The Lost Princess
by Speisla Cartoon Cartoon
Summary: (X-Over w/Wonder Woman) Lena never knew anything about her biological parents, believing that she had been abandoned. But the truth may be something she had never expected. Like she's the lost daughter of Wonder Woman, for example. Or that liars and traitors conspire to ruin her life.
1. Epiphany

**I started this fic before chapter 2x05. And it's quite timely, because with Lena's adoptive mother, what my baby needs most is a bit of real love.**

* * *

 **First Act**

 **Where Lena Luthor is a normal business woman with normal problems, like a homicidal family and strange dreams.**

* * *

 _Lena dreams of a room where the sun comes through a large window. Everything looks huge, and that's why she comes to the conclusion that she must be small. The walls are light wood, giving off their smell of the forest. Lena likes the smell._

 _It's hot, Lena is awake, and she's bored. When's mom coming? Lena shakes a fist in the air, annoyed. She hears a noise like a cry. The cry is hers._

 _The door opens and a woman enters, half asleep, tripping over one of the toys on the floor. She does not fall, but momentarily loses her balance. She mutters a word in a language Lena does not know and approaches the crib._

 _"Ishtar, Lena. You could have waited another hour to wake up."_

 _The woman lifts Lena up in her arms, watching her closely. Lena also looks closely at her. She is totally beautiful; her face is full of sleep, and her abundant red-orange hair is completely disheveled. She has bright green eyes, reflecting different colors as the light changes._

 _"Well, well, you don't need a diaper change and it's not time to eat yet. What's wrong?"_

 _Lena twists awkwardly in the heat._

 _"Are you hot?" The red-haired woman looks at her in disbelief. "It's a relief that you were not born in Bana-Mighdall, then. This is a picnic in comparison." Then the woman smiles. "Well, with a bath, the heat will go away."_

* * *

 _It's been forty minutes and Lena is splashing in a small tub. The heat is gone, and she plays happily with the water bubbles._

 _"Lena, stay still. If you keep moving, you'll get soap in your eyes. And it's me who will have to deal with Diana later."_

 _The door to the room opens. Lena laughs, feeling happy to see the person standing there. Diana smiles with love and approaches her wife and daughter. She kisses Artemis on the lips, and the baby on her forehead._

 _"How is my sun and stars this morning?"_

 _"Well, my wrists still hurt. We should stop using your lasso and replace it with something less painful, Diana. "_

 _"Artemis, I was talking to Lena."_

 _"Lena doesn't use your lasso, she doesn't even know how to walk yet. And very soon I will not be able to walk if you continue using your lasso as you used it last night. "_

 _"Missy!"_

 _"What? Now what?"_

 _"Not in front of Lena!"_

 _"Come on, Di. She's a year old, not thirty. She doesn't understand what we're talking about. "_

 _Diana rolled her eyes and shook her head. Her index finger caressed the baby's cheek. "Who's to say she doesn't understand? After all, as our daughter, I would not be surprised."_

* * *

 **Lena Luthor**

 **3:31 AM**

Lena awoke in the moonlight.

She woke in silence, not quite sure what she had dreamt. She only remembered a few blurry things about the dream, but the feeling of cold water on her skin persisted, as if she had just stepped out of the shower. She could also feel the lips of the brunette woman ( _who was she?_ ) on her cheek, like a ghost escaping of a dream.

 _I should stop working late, it makes me dream crazy things,_ thought Lena. _Even though it was a nice dream._

In the moonlight, Lena could see the outline of Kara's naked body, sleeping on her stomach, her dark blond hair messy. One of her arms was around Lena's waist, her hand very close to her intimate area. Lena moved her leg a little. _I still can feel her inside me._

As succulent as the sight of Kara's back was, Lena knew she had to go back to sleep.

 _Perhaps what makes me have strange dreams is to make love with an alien that could break me in two._

Lena inhaled into Kara's hair and went back to sleep.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **7:07 AM**

Kara Zor-El Danvers woke up to the sound of her cellphone, the sound blaring in her ear as if it were a kryptonite hammer.

 _Oh, Rao. What time is it?_

Opening her eyes quickly, much to her displeasure, she staggered to her cellphone. Unfortunately, it was no easy task, for her senses were a little disturbed, perhaps a result of the heavy night she had just had. _Three robberies, two fires, one bomb threat, four automobile accidents... This city wasn't that dangerous when I wasn't Supergirl._ She could hear her phone, its sound bounced off the walls.

"Lena, wake up."

"Mmmmhhmm."

"Honey, where are my pants?"

"I don't know." Lena mumbled into her pillow, eyes still closed

"What do you mean you don't know? You took them from me last night!"

"Couch?"

Kara went to the living room, where she found her pants next to her girlfriend's favorite red blouse, haphazardly thrown on the floor. She picked up her cellphone. It was Snapper.

"Mr Carr?... It's 7:10, it's not late... What happened?... What?... No, you don't have to repeat yourself, Sir, I got it... I'll be th..."

Kara didn't need to finish her sentence because her boss had hung up the phone. _Seriously, this man makes Cat look like an angel._

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **7:15 AM**

Kara gave up on preparing a coffee, and instead drank five glasses of yogurt and four bars of cereal. It was not much, but it would kill her hunger for now. Snapper sounded pretty impatient on the phone. _Whatever it was, it was important._ Kara entered her bedroom again. Lena was dozing with her hand over her eyes.

"Lena, honey, I'm going to work early." Kara bent to grab her glasses from the bedside table.

"Don't forget to wear clothes, Puppy."

Kara looked down; she was still naked. "Oh..."

In four seconds, the heroine was dressed again. Kara was surprised it had taken so long. _I'll need a coffee on the way_. She approached the bed again, drinking in the image of the beautiful brunette there, partially covered by a thin white sheet.

"Kara, you have to go," said said without opening her eyes.

"I could watch you all day."

"You don't have all day, Puppy."

"Right... what a pity."

Kara leaned down to kiss Lena's forehead, then her closed eye, then her chin, then her left nipple...

"Kara..."

"Okay, I'm leaving. I love you."

"I love you too."

Kara left with her super speed. Lena slept for twenty more minutes. She didn't think about her dream again all morning.

* * *

 **Diana of Themyscira**

 **A week ago**

Diana of Themyscira was almost two thousand five hundred years old. The years had long since ceased to mean anything to her. However, the last thirty years had seemed eternal.

After the death of her daughter, she had never felt the desire to leave the island. If it was not for her wife, she did not think she could bear Lena's absence. She still remembered every detail of her small face: her mischievous smile, her black hair, her white skin, her plump cheeks, her green eyes ( _Artemis's eyes, eyes that I fell in love with twice)_.

Diana was sitting in the stands, watching Menalippe train playfully with a Bana-Mighdall warrior ( _Trigona? I always forget her name_ ). The vision had a bittersweet tint. She could never teach Lena to use a sword.

Diana felt two strong arms embrace her from behind, and red hair tickling her cheek.

Artemis spent a long time without speaking, watching the battle with Diana.

"Are you alright?"

There was a pause. "...No, I'll never be fine on the anniversary of her death."

"I'm not fine either."

Silence. Artemis tightened her grip. Diana took her hand.

"Do you think she would have been a good warrior?"

"Absolutely not."

Diana looked at Artemis.

"Lena was... sweet, Diana, and intelligent. And not once did she show interest in learning to be a warrior. Instead, she liked to learn new things and these colored books." Artemis smiled without joy. "She reminded me of my little sister Alexa... surely... she would have been a devourer of books."

They did not speak for a long time, remembering.

"Let's get away from here."

Diana looked at her wife, surprise in her eyes.

"I never thought you'd say something like that. You, who are more Amazonian than any other."

"We're not happy here." Artemis looked at her, trying to hold her tongue and not be brusque with her wife. "We haven't been happy here for a long time, Diana. When I became immortal, it was so that we would never be apart. But what good is that if we're not happy? And we're not happy here. I haven't seen you smile in fifteen years. We need to leave for a while." She took her hand. "Diana, put your outfit back on. Return to be Wonder Woman, to help the people of the man's world. I know you, and I know that's the only thing that can make you happy again. "

"And what about you? You hate man's world."

"I've had thirty years to change my mind." Artemis shrugged, smiling a little. "I am and I will always be an Amazon, just like you... But, love, maybe it's time I looked for some action myself. Break a couple of bones, like in the old days."

Diana smiled genuinely. Suddenly the day did not look so dark. The effect that Artemis had on her would never be extinguished.

"Agreed."

The redhead smiled, relieved.

"My mother will be furious, but yes. We will return to the man's world, Artemis. It has surely changed for the better. "

"And if not, well, they'll have Wonder Woman to show them the way."

The redhead's hands touched Diana's face. Diana never ceased to wonder how Artemis had matured in all the decades of knowing her. When she met her, the first time she had found Bana-Mighdall, she was a child filled with hatred and mistrust and pride. And today that insufferable girl was her wife, her reason to live every day after the death of their daughter.

Diana was almost two thousand five hundred years old. And she only really felt alive when she became Wonder Woman. And her wife knew it. And she loved her for that.

"I love you, Artemis."

"It's impossible not to, Diana."


	2. Wonderful News

**I did not even expect this to get accepted. That gave me inspiration.**  
 **Thank you very much for your support!**

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **8:32 AM**

"Amazons." Carr struck the table with his fist. "How much do all of you know about the famous Amazons?" Kara could not help but notice that he looked moodier than usual, which she would have thought was impossible. "When I was a kid, every damn girl in my neighborhood had a Wonder Woman doll. I still remember those horrible dolls. When Wonder Woman faded into the air..." Snapper tossed a paper ball into the trash. "...Finally I thought the girls would stop playing with those dolls. And they did, most of them. And it was all peace and quiet, until two years ago, when some damn toy company decided to create those Supergirl dolls."

Kara did her best to keep her face serious.

"You, Park, what do you know about the Amazons?"

"They are immortal warriors, sir." Linda answered, next to Kara. "They live on an isolated island, Themyscira. The island is hidden and very difficult to find. Some people believe that it is kept invisible by some sort of magic. Amazons believe in ancient greek gods. They…"

"Enough, Park. You've done your homework."

Kara muttered under her breath without realizing it.

"What did you say, Danvers?"

Apparently, it had not been so low. Snapper looked at her as if he were going rip a piece out of her. Kara swallowed hard.

"I said t-there are also Egyptian amazons." The hurried words slipped from her mouth. "Unlike the others, they are not immortal. And they are more ferocious. O-one of them was Wonder Woman almost thirty-five years ago. They called themselves... "

"Enough," Snapper interrupted. "The Bana-Mighdalls, yes, how can we forget them? Privileged children like you don't know, of course, but for a long time those savages were the nightmare of all children. I will never forget that the only time that Daily Planet and Central City's Picture News agreed on anything was to attack that wild redhead who was nothing of a superhero."

Snapper rose abruptly, staring at them all. "But enough of the beating around the bush and listen to me, because I'll only say it once: Wonder Woman is back. And the press is going to have a damn picnic when they find out. But we are the only ones who know it for now. So, go and remove the old files, because soon the damn Wonder Woman dolls will be back and it will be thanks to us."

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **9:24 AM**

"I just can't believe it, James! This has to be a dream, a beautiful dream! I'm going to wake up!"

James just kept taking her friend by the hand to his office.

"Do you realize what this means for the world? Wonder Woman returned! "

"Shhh."

"Oh yeah, sorry, it's a secret." Kara closed James office's door. "It's just that it's so exciting! I'm soo surprised! Years ago, when Alex and I were girls and she was in a good mood, she would tell me stories about the feats of Wonder Woman and it was amazing and... "

Kara stopped talking when she noticed that her friend was holding out an envelope. Kara looked at him, confused, before taking it.

"What is this?"

"Cat sent it to you." James smiled a little. "She told me to give it to you in person. I guess she couldn't trust an e-mail. I don't blame her. "

"James?"

"Have not you wondered how we know that Wonder Woman came back before the rest of the world?" James smiled. "Read the letter, Kara."

Amazed, Kara opened the letter her former boss and mentor had sent her.

 _Kara:_

 _Right now, I'm sure Snapper has given you the good news that a certain princess decided to return after a long absence. Honestly, I thought I'd never see the day when Wonder Woman decided to come back. Millennials like you would not understand, but before Supergirl and Superman, in an era where girls played to be Amazons instead of be aliens, Wonder Woman made her mark on the world. Heck, even I considered Diana of Themyscira an example to follow. I also tried to seduce her sometimes in my first interviews, when I was a novice like you..._

Kara shuddered at the mental image. James arched an eyebrow.

 _...But this woman, who could lift a building with one hand, could not recognize an invitation to go out even if her life depended on it. Besides, she seems to like bad girls. She ended up marrying that redhead Bana-something. I just found that out, she just told me._

 _While I write this letter, I am leaving Central Park in New York, where I have met in secret with Wonder Woman._

 _It was also a surprise for me, and an honor for them, this meeting. As you will know, I am very busy with my new challenges, but a chance like this falling from the sky should not be wasted. Diana, Wonder Woman, and that creepy redhead, have been in New York for almost a week. They have been searching for the contacts they had thirty years ago, forgetting that we, mere mortals, age and die._

 _So they have needed to make new contacts. And guess who they came for? To the Media Mogul. It seems that Diana saw my name in a CatCo's magazine and remembered that baby reporter, so she contacted me._

 _Honestly, Kara, just when I think I've seen it all, life never ceases to amaze me._

 _Now, you'll probably be wondering why I'm telling you this. One of the reasons is that it will be CatCo that announces to the world that Wonder Woman has returned. That means someone will have to interview her. Your colleagues may not know it yet, but a team of eight journalists will meet with her the day after tomorrow. A team that you will be in._

 _After all, the interview has to be perfect ... I think that Supergirl, our heroine, might need to meet a veteran heroine like Wonder Woman... Think of everything she could learn from the Amazons._

 _I'm a genius, I know. If only Supergirl had an excuse to approach her..._

 _Work hard._

 _Cat._

Kara had to blink a couple of times. The blonde had simply forgotten how to think. James took the letter gently from her hands, and then ripped it into pieces.

"Well, Kara, it looks like you've got some interesting days."

* * *

 **Diana**

 **Yesterday**

Diana was deeply breathing in the air of New York. It was loaded, slightly toxic. Very different from the pure air of Themyscira. _The air of this city has not changed in thirty years._

Diana loved it.

For the first time in thirty years, she felt totally renewed, enthusiastic. The princess could not help but look around with fascination as she walked down the street. Everything had changed so much in thirty years. There were different cars (why _were they changed? Weren't they fine before?_ ), different music ( _how strange is this music!_ ), people dressed differently, and an alarming number of people talking with black rectangles in their ears. _(Are they important? Will I need one?_ ).

To be honest, Diana was happier thas she had been for a long time. Artemis noticed that with a smile. Although she knew that her happiness had a shadow of sadness.

Diana knew that most of her friends, of course, would have died over time. However, when she learned that her former publicist Myndi Mayer had died four years ago, she could not help but shed a few tears in memory of her loyal friend who had been an invaluable ally thirty years ago.

 _I should be used to it. It's not the first time that time takes away my friends. It's the price of being immortal. It's nothing new._

However, Diana needed to go out into the world again, so she knew she would need someone else to help her. And that was why, perhaps by Hera's design, the brunette had found a CatCo magazine in one of her explorations of the outside world. And the name at the foot of the page awoke a memory in her head, of a bold young reporter who she had met years ago in Metropolis.

"I just can not believe it." Diana said smiling, walking down Fifth Avenue. "I mean, Artemis, seriously, isn't it wonderful how time works for mortals? The last time I saw Cat Grant was practically a girl with, her dreams and bright ideas, and now, wow, I just can't believe she's become such a wonderful woman! "

"Mmhmm," Artemis replied, taking her wife's arm to prevent her from bumping into people as they walked.

"You were right, man's world has changed for the better! Thirty years ago it would have been inconceivable for a woman to be so successful. And look at the world now! A female president, Cat Grant, that Supergirl... "

"You have to be more careful with journalists, Diana." Artemis put on her dark glasses. "Maybe thirty years have passed, but the journalists remain the same. As soon as they smell blood, they attack. "

"Missy, it's been thirty years. Do you still hate journalists? "

"And they hate me. And so it will be until the end of times. Your new best friend Cat Grant looked at me as if I was going to rip her head off. It's good to know that I still have that effect on people." She smirked, and Diana shook her head.

The week had been crazy, and Diana had enjoyed every moment of it. _Man's world changed so fast_. Diana felt like the first time she had left, marveling at a new world with infinite possibilities.

Wonder Woman smiled so hard that it looked like her face was going to split in two. Artemis pretended that she hadn't seen her.

"You know? It's wonderful to be here again. Even though most of my friends are dead." She shrugged. "I think we'll need new fri... wait!"

"Ishtar, Diana, lower your voice! People are watching you! "

"Oh, I'm sorry. But I just remembered that not all of my friends are dead." Diana took her wife by the shoulders and looked into her eyes. "There is someone for whom thirty years is not a mortal time. Someone whose heart is as big as his body. I really can't believe I didn't think about it before... "

"Diana."

"I want to find J'onn." She came closer. "The last time I saw him, he was going to South America to hide from the humans for a while. If any of my old friends are still in this world, it's J'onn. "

* * *

 **Lena Luthor**

 **12:15 PM**

Lena Luthor rubbed her back with a cramp. _It's not good sitting so long._

The CEO of L-Corp decided to get out of her chair, after two hours of discussing the details of her next business with Japan by telephone. _A place I will not be visiting soon, thank you_. Lena looked at her diary for today, thinking about the meeting that she would be having in an hour, where someone would surely make the mistake ( _again_ ) of believing that she was just a pretty face and not a smart business-woman. _It happens at least once per meeting_. Lena was already accustomed.

 _I wonder what they see in my face. I only see... a face. I'll never understand._ Lena sighed _. Well, at least Kara likes my face..._

Lena decided to drink a cup of coffee, much needed after being insomniac overnight. Lately it happened often, and she always dreamed the same thing: that she was a baby on a hot island, surrounded by beautiful women. Almost always, with two women who behaved very well with her. _It would be an interesting dream if I was not just a baby in them. I could invent a remote for dreams. I bet I'd make a fortune. Who would not want to control their dreams?_ The idea pleased her and wrote it down in a memo.

Then she had the misfortune to take a look at the newspaper next to her coffee.

 ** _"Lillian Luthor transferred to maximum security prison._**

 _This morning, Lillian Luthor (56) former director of Project Cadmus, who two months ago attempted to kill Supergirl and Superman in a massive attack on National City, was taken to a maximum-security prison for potentially dangerous criminals. Particular care has been taken that Mrs Luthor will not be able to contact her son, the infamous Lex Luthor (35). Her daughter, Lena Luthor (32) is still being investigated to determine her possible ignorance or complicity in her mother's crimes... "_

Lena forced herself to stop reading. She crossed the room, opened the window, and threw the newspaper out.

Suddenly her desire to drink coffee had become a desire to drink whiskey, desire that she suppressed. _No, Lena, you promised Kara you wouldn't drink again._

Lena returned to her desk and got back to work.

* * *

 **Bonus:**

Alex and Maggie were having a very serious discussion about who was cuter, walking under the L-Corp building. The couple were unlucky to walk under Lena Luthor's window, just as the furious CEO threw her newspaper out the window.

"Maggie, I'm serious, you're cuter."

"Alexandra Danvers, stop saying that! You're cuter!"

"Maggie, have you seen your cheeks? I could pinch your cheeks all day! And I'm not the kind of person who pinches cheeks! "

"Are you kidding? Have you seen your damn face? You're an eleven on a scale from one to ten, Alex, fuck! You're like a baby bunny! You're cuter, deal with...!"

 ** _* PRUMP! *_**

The newspaper hit Maggie's face, the detective who could not detect it in time, hitting her in her eye. Maggie moaned in pain and put her hands on her sore eye.

"Maggie!"

"Aaaahhh _... fuuck_." Maggie lifted the newspaper from the floor. "What kind of idiot throws a newspaper out of a window?"

Alex picked up the newspaper, reading the title. She sighed and looked up at the building. "I have some ideas."


	3. Friends

**Thank you very much for your support! If you could tell if you liked the chapter or if you have any suggestions, that would make me very happy. I will try to update every day.**

* * *

 ** _This dream is different._**

 _Lena knows it, because she can't see anything. Her eyes are closed, but nevertheless, she listens. There are two breaths at her side: one known, and another that she does not know._

 _"Oh..." the unfamiliar voice whispers. "Oh, Diana, she's absolutely gorgeous. She's looks just like you."_

 _The other voice, the familiar one (mommy!) lets out a melodious laugh._

 _"I have to disagree. You'd be surprised how much she behaves like Artemis, Lilly." Lena hears the voice laugh. "Artemis hates carrots. The other day I tried to feed Lena some carrot puree. She refused to eat it, so she threw the carrots and they ended up in my mother's hair. "_

 _"Are you serious? Your royal and serious mother... covered in carrot puree?"_

 _"I've never seen Artemis more proud."_

 _Lena tried to move, but her body was too small._

 _"Ohh, Diana, I think she's waking up! Can I hold her? I have not had a baby in my arms since Alexander. And I'll need to get used to the feelings of having another baby in my arms in another month, or I'll lose my patience and Lionel will have to suckle our future daughter."_

 _"Of course you can hold her, Lilly."_

 _Lena suddenly felt herself being lifted into the air, separated from her comfortable crib. Her cloudy eyes widened, but they were too new to focus well on anything._

 _"She's opened her eyes! Wow... "_

 _"Yes…"_

 _"With these eyes, you'll have to chase the boys away with a stick."_

 _"Possibly the girls too. But we won't have to worry about that for quite some time."_

 _"Are you sure?"_

 _"Lena has to be a secret until she's older and can take care of herself. I don't want to imagine what my enemies would do if they knew about her. I have made this Embassy a real impenetrable bunker. No one is going to hurt her."_

 _"And what will you do when she grows up and decides that she wants to escape and live her own life? After all, you did that."_

 _"If Lena escapes, as it seems to be the family tradition, I trust you'll be the first to look for her!" The woman (mommy?) laughed._

 _"... Hey Diana... You think our children will be friends, like us?"_

 _"There's nothing I'd like more, Lilly. Although I suspect they will gave us some good headaches."_

 _Lena was held from under her armpits, her small feet waving in the air. She was in front of the woman who was carrying her. A woman with dull blond hair and eyes like ice._

 _"The future holds great things for you, Princess."_

 _Lillian Luthor smiled._

* * *

 **Lena Luthor**

 **6:00 PM**

Lena woke with a gasp. It lasted less than a second, but her headache lasted a little longer.

 _Couch. Bad place to sleep._

The brunette had fallen asleep on the sofa, after she had a generous helping of gummy bears. Abstaining from alcohol had caused her to feel anxious sometimes, with irrepressible desires to forget everything and _drink and drink_. Her problem had begun after Lex had caused the earthquake. Kara had been her reason to quit drinking. But now that the same story was repeating itself with her mother, Lena was too afraid to fall back into the temptation of easy oblivion.

So instead, Lena Luthor was trying to replace alcohol with sugar.

 _What happened? I was dreaming of something... Yes, something bad. I had a nightmare? No, it didn't feel like a nightmare. What was it about? Come on Luthor, remember... It had to do with my mother, and some people were talking about carrots and..._

The doorbell interrupted her. Trying to tidy up her hair, Lena went to the door of her house, not bothering to put on shoes. Opening the door, she found Winn smiling at her without happiness.

"I hope you're not busy."

Lena smiled. "Hi, Winn. And no, I finished working... I don't know, a while ago. I fell asleep."

"Umm, did you see... Umm...?"

"The news?" Lena pursed her mouth, removing nonexistent lint from her clothes. "More or less. I stopped reading in the part where they started talking about my possible complicity with... her."

"I figured." Winn removed his hands from behind his back, revealing a box of chocolate chip cookies and a couple of violent video games.

"What is that?"

"This is, more or less, therapy for the sons and siblings of insane psychopaths."

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **6:50 PM**

Kara smiles as she entered her apartment, carrying three books under her arm and reading another one in her other hand. She was reading _Wonder Woman: The Legend_. The other three books were _Themyscira vs Bana-Mighdall: Civil Wars, Wonder Woman and her Current lLegacy,_ and the last book was a compilation of old news clipping describing the most outstanding exploits of Diana of Themyscira.

"Lena, I'm ho..."

 _"NO!"_

With super speed, Kara ran into the living room. To her relief, no one was being killed. It was just a very sad Winn complaining, watching the television next to Lena, who left the controls of the PlayStation on the table.

"How did you do that? I was about to win!"

"No, Winn, you thought you were about to win. I made you believe that so that you would lower your guard, and attack you at your weak point with all my power. "

"This game make me miss Mario Bros."

"What are you doing, guys?" Kara said, announcing her presence.

Her girlfriend and her best friend smiled at her. Kara sat down next to Lena, as close as possible. She took a lock of her hair in her hand and kissed her girlfriend on the lips.

"Awwww, how cute!"

Lena, still serious, took a gummy bear and threw it to Winn.

"Hi, Winn! What are you playing? Anything interesting? "

"It's just the simple, classic, and violent Mortal Kombat." Lena took another gummy bear. "Winn was right, it's quite therapeutic to rip off heads in video games."

Kara looked at them with intrigue. "Something happen?"

Lena shrugged, grabbing her cell phone. After opening Google Chrome, the brunette entered Picture's website and gave her girlfriend her cell phone. As Kara read, her adorable quiet expression turned into a grimace of anger. She murmured something in her native language that did not sound very nice, and gave Lena back her phone.

"It's happening again." Lena said. "Luckily I think this will be the last time people hate me for something my family has done. After all, I have no more family that can turn evil. Well, there's my cousin Zara, but she escaped to the Caribbean with one of my employees a year ago, and as far as I know she's still pretty sane. But if tomorrow she becomes evil and begins killing people, it will be for being married to Claire Dearing, not for being a Luthor."

"They don't know you." Kara took her hand. "They have no idea how you are. They can't reach Lex or Lillian, so they mess with you. That's not right, Lena, it's appalling. You have shown them thousands of times that you're a good person who wants to do good things and they..."

"Kara, it's fine." Lena squeezed her hand. "It could have been worse. Luckily for me, my mother stayed well away from the image of L-Corp. My company will continue to suffer collateral damage for a while... but everything will be fine, I promise. "

"Lena…"

"Winn, would you like to stay for dinner?" Lena asked her friend, who was very interested in the ceiling.

"Oh? Umm... I don't want to intrude... "

"You're not intruding, Winn. I insist that you stay... Will it convince you if I tell you we're having spaghetti? "

"You're bribing me with spaghetti?" Winn brought his fist to his mouth in mock surprise. "Fine, but only if you have dumplings."

Lena smiled and got up from the couch. "Play in my place if you want, puppy."

The brunette went to the kitchen. Once Kara made sure her girlfriend was not earshot, she took off her glasses with a brisk gesture and approached her best friend. "This isn't right, Winn. Lena has been through enough already, all because she had the bad luck of being adopted by psychopaths. It isn't her fault that her brother killed so many people, or that her mother tried to kill us and control the city. It's... it's... unfair. "

"Of course." Winn bit his cheek. "How was work?"

"Wor...? oh!" With all her thoughts on her girlfriend, Kara had momentarily forgotten Wonder Woman. "Winn, I'm sorry, really! But I have a super secret mission and I can't talk about it with you now. But I'll tell you as soon as I can... why are you laughing?"

"Did someone entrust you with a secret mission? Kara, God, you're terrible keeping secrets!"

"What? I'm not terrible keeping secrets! Nobody knows I'm Supergirl, only those I trust."

"Kara, you told your secret identity to a guy from another dimension."

"Ahm..."

"A guy of another dimension that _you literally just met_."

"Barry was trustworthy!" Kara threw a pillow at him. "Imagine being trapped in another dimension, Winn! Barry needed help and I helped him. He couldn't have gone back alone. Technology makes our life easier, but had it not been for _my powers_ , Barry could not have... Wait... "

Kara thought for a moment. Then her face lit up in a smile.

"Kara?"

"I think I have an idea to help Lena." She bit her lip and took her friend's hand. "But I'll need you to help me with your powers."

* * *

 **Artemis of Bana-Mighdall**

 **0:30 AM**

Artemis watched the moon from the roof of the embassy.

How many times in her life had she observed the moon? So many she couldn't count. It was as if the white satellite shone only for her at night. During her early years, whenever she felt a rage so intense that she threatened to drown her ( _which used to be almost always_ ), the red-haired warrior could only calm herself by observing the moon.

 _"Mun Mun!"_

 _"It's the 'moon', Lena."_

 _"Mun?"_

 _"Moon."_

 _"No no, mun mun."_

 _"So, what you're telling me is that the correct way to say it is 'mun'? And that all the people have been saying it wrong for thousands of years? "_

 _"Yay."_

Artemis stopped remembering as she heard Alexa's footsteps come through the door. Her younger sister, who now could easily be confused with her mother, stood behind her. Artemis knew she was being observed.

"I won't bite you if you come over here, Alexa."

The other redhead let out a sigh, and proceeded to sit down beside Artemis. Artemis looked at the pencil skirt and pink blouse her sister wore, normal clothes for a mature woman ( _ambassador, my sister is ambassador, seeks the best for people who never accepted her_ ) in man's world, without being able to avoid thinking that if someone had said to her, thirty five years ago, that Alexa would choose to live in the man's world, surely she would have hit them in the face, many times.

Alexa smiled a little. "I never thought I would live to see you again in the man's world."

"Well, Alexa, if you had to endure your royal mother-in-law killing the beauty of the nights with her snoring, you would have ended up getting tired as well." Alexa smiled and wrinkles formed in her eyes. Artemis tried not to see them. "I thought you slept."

"I could not... How, if my sister is back in the world she said hated so much?"

"And this time, I will not be able to join the Hellenders to keep me entertained." Artemis pursed her mouth. "I tried to get in touch with Nathaniel this morning. Died. His granddaughter, Raven Roth, runs Hellenders now. A half demon girl leading a demon-hunting organization. How things have changed, right? "

"Artie, what happened an hour ago..."

"Diana is upset, but she'll be fine. I'll get you a new vase." Artemis drew her favorite knife from its holster, playing with it. "I always knew Lillian Luthor was twisted, that she was not to be trusted. But Diana insisted that Lillian wanted to improve the world, to do good things for people... I never saw Diana more sad than that night thirty years ago, when they broke their friendship. Hell, her kids even played with... with... Lena."

Artemis threw her knife against the wooden wall that was two meters away. The projectile hit an insect.

"She was her friend." the green-eyed woman murmured. "The first friend Diana had when she became Wonder Woman, Alexa. And thirty years later, that same friend is the leader of a terrorist organization responsible for Neftis knows how many deaths. I feel guilty. Somehow, I knew Luthor could turn evil. And if I had stuck an arrow in her neck thirty years ago... "

"It doesn't matter anymore. And you couldn't do it."

"For all that shit of 'respect the lives of your enemies'?"

"Because Diana would not have forgiven you."

Artemis smiled sadly. "As always, you're right, sister."

"Artemis."

"Alexa?"

"Diana is sleeping. You don't have to be strong for her right now." Alexa took her hand. "Tell me the truth, why are you so upset?"

Artemis looked at her for eternal seconds, before looking away. "Her first stuffed toy"

Alexa didn't understand.

"When Lena was born, Lillian gave her her first stuffed toy. A yellow moon."

Alexa watched her sister cry in silence, like warriors cry.


	4. Names

**For those who grew up with Smallville, they will be familiar with the name "Lutessa"**  
 **For those who don't, trust me ;)**

* * *

 **Lena Luthor**

 **4:00 PM**

It was Saturday, the sun was shining, the birds were singing, and Lena Luthor's car was filled with eggs and red paint.

 _Murderess. Out of our city._

Lena felt a prick of honest rage. That 2011 Golden Chevrolet Cruze was her favorite, the only one she used for her personal use. She looked after him like her own baby. She always made sure he was clean and well-maintained. She loved him almost as much as Kara.

"Jess..." her secretary shivered in fear. On a quiet day, Lena would have tried to avoid that. "Do you have any idea how those vandals got into L-Corp's private parking lot?"

"No, Mrs. Luthor. T-That should be impossible."

"Well, obviously it is not." Lena sighed. "I trust you'll fix this, as soon as possible."

"Of course, ma'am. And I'll call you a cab to get you home. "

Jess was pulling out her cell phone when Lena stopped her.

"Don't bother, Jess. I'll back to my house walking."

"What? Ms Luthor, no!" Jess exclaimed. "Something bad could happen if you're recognized walking down the street! Alone! You could be threatened, or hurt, or..."

"You're right, Jess. Walking alone down the street, being a Luthor, is currently like suicide."

"I'm relieved to hear that, ma'am. I'll call you a ... "

"I'll just have to make sure no one recognizes me."

"What?"

"Take off your clothes."

* * *

 **A normal woman**

 **4:27 PM**

Lena Luthor felt a bit uncomfortable as she walked down the street. Jess's clothes looked like they were taken from Colombian television, but it would do for the moment. She finished her camouflage by adding dark glasses and a hooded coat. She felt slightly ridiculous, but if anything a Luthor had never been, it was _ridiculous_. So Lena was confident of going unnoticed.

The brunette, wanting to stop thinking for a while, entered a coffee shop. Sadly, the place was full of people. A row of at least seven people spread across the counter. Lena considered leaving, but she really _needed_ coffee.

After an interminable twenty-five minutes, Lena had a tray with an espresso and two apple muffins. She looked up to find a table, but they were all taken, full of happy people talking loudly.

Lena was about to return to ask the attendant if there were any other tables, when she heard a small noise in front of her. At the table by the window, a woman accidentally dropped her cell phone, and it ended next to Lena's foot. The people turned momentarily. The woman was getting up from her chair when Lena picked up the phone, and came over to give it back to her.

"Oh thanks, you shouldn't have." The woman thanked her. She looked young, perhaps only a couple of years older than Lena. Her eyes were framed by huge glasses.

"You're welcome. These things happen." Lena was going to keep walking back to the counter.

"You're welcome to sit with me." The woman shrugged. "I mean, it doesn't look like this place is going to be emptied out anytime soon."

Lena was about to decline, but the woman's small smile looked sincere. The CEO of L-Corp gave her a quick glance. Black curls tied in a ponytail, light eyes framed by huge glasses, blue sweater, purple jeans. _It looks like clothes pulled out of Kara's closet._

Lena made her best attempt to return the smile and sat down in front of the woman, thanking her.

As she drank her coffee, she could not help but glance at the woman. She had a huge open newspaper, in the corner of which was a half-eaten chicken sandwich. The woman was sliding her index finger over her cell phone in frustration, in a very striking way. She let out a sigh. Lena looked at her, raising an eyebrow behind her sunglasses.

"Problems with your cell phone?"

"The problem is my cell phone." The woman blushed a little. "It's certainly very pretty, but I have not the slightest idea how to use it. I've been trying to call my wife for twenty minutes. "

"Have you tried make Skype calls?"

"Skype?" The woman looked genuinely puzzled for a moment. "Ehh, yes, Skype. Definitely a great invention..."

"...You don't know what Skype is, do you?"

The woman smiled a little as her blush reached up to her glasses. "This is my first cell phone, actually. That's why I'm a bit disoriented. "

"Really?" Lena smiled playfully, crossing her legs. "I find it hard to believe, unless you come from a desert island."

The woman wrinkled her mouth and looked away. "I'm from... Hawaii. And it's not that I've never seen a cell phone before. No, not at all. It's just... I never needed to have one so ... emm, I never learned to use them."

Smiling genuinely, Lena leaned across the table. "Well, I'm pretty good using cell phones. If you want I can help you. What is your wife's number? "

"Her number of what?"

"Cell phone, of course."

"What? Does she have to have a cell phone too? "

For three seconds, Lena thought this woman was joking. But the bewilderment in that woman's face was totally genuine. _God, I knew that in Hawaii many people live primitively, but this surpasses everything I believed. This poor woman must have lived in the stone age._

"... Yes... In order to be able to talk to someone by cellphone, that person should also, well, have a cellphone."

The woman smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry. I really have to learn to use these things. Uff ... I'm already sorry I bought it. "

"Don't be. I don't know how things work in Hawaii, but in America, if you don't have a cell phone, you don't exist." Lena shrugged as she stirred her coffee. She wanted to help the woman. "And that's a good phone. Do you know how to surf the internet?"

"Inter-? No, I don't know how to do that. How is it done?"

"First, you need a Wifi password." Lena showed the woman on her cell phone. "Now, you go to the browser, that's is here. Once you open it, you write the website you want to visit. Any preference?"

"Umm... The New York Times? Does that have a 'website'?"

Lena typed quickly, causing the woman to look at her in astonishment. The website took a few seconds to appear, but when it did, Lena wished she had not done so, had not entered the cafeteria, had not offered help to this stranger.

 **Relatives of the victims demand life imprisonment for Lillian Luthor. FBI investigates Lena Luthor.** _And there was even a poignant picture of the victims gathered in front of the court, dressed in black._

Lena suppressed her desire to vomit and looked at the woman at her side. Her expression was blank, momentarily serious. _Well, what did you expect, Lena? What would you do a new friend? Since when are you so naive?_

Lena returned the cell phone to its owner, who read the news in the most absolute of the silences. Suddenly, she had the desire to burst into tears like a five-year-old. Which, of course, she could not do in a coffee shop, in front of a stranger. _I have to find a way to leave without seeming abrupt._

"I hope she's innocent."

"Huh?" _What?_

"This article attacks Lutessa Luthor, but it all sounds like speculation. I understand she helped that Supergirl defeat Cadmus, or at least that's what I've been told. Poor Lutessa is not to blame for her mother's disgraceful behavior. At least she should have the benefit of the doubt... I'm sorry, I don't tolerate injustice. "

Lena went completely blank, trying to process so many unexpected words. However, one of them had stood out more strongly. "Lutessa?"

The blue-eyed woman rolled her eyes. "Fine, Lutessa Lena Luthor. But I'd rather think of her as Lutessa. Honestly, I don't understand why they have to call her by her middle name. I wish they didn't, that name..." The woman stopped talking, looking away and clenching her fist. "I probably look like a crazy woman, I'm sorry." The woman stood up, leaving the sandwich unfinished. "I think I should go now. Thank you very much for your help with this cell phone, Miss...? "

"Ah-" Lena could not remember the last time she'd run out of words. "Danvers... Katie Danvers."

"Thank you so much for your help, Katie. I'm Diana o-Prince. Have a good day."

Once the woman left, Lena allowed herself to fill with confusion. She would have felt indescribably happy if it had not been for that 'Lutessa'. _The last time I noticed, that was not my name. I'm just Lena._ She shook her head sadly. _That poor woman must have some mental problem. Yes, she must have it if she doesn't really believe that all the Luthors are pure evil._

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **8:30 PM**

When Maggie Sawyer was given a top secret assignment, she was waiting for a covert investigation... Never in her fucking life she would have expected to be Wonder Woman's escort on her way from her Hotel to CatCo. Not that they needed protection (Artemis had made that clear at least three times), but Cat Grant had contacts. And Cat Grant would not let such a wonderful firstfruits escapes her, not at all.

"Let's see if I understand..." Artemis began. A few feet away, Maggie could see her eyebrow tremble, _bad signal._ "You tied your hair, put on some glasses, and changed your name from 'Princess Diana of Themyscira' to _'Diana Prince'_? And yet no one recognized you? What is wrong with this people?"

"Oh, come on, love. This city is so sunny and beautiful. I had to check it out before the press conference. And thirty years have passed, they don't recognize my face at first sight anymore."

But far from finishing the discussion, the red-haired Amazon continued to scold her wife for five more minutes. _Wow._ Maggie could not help but marvel.

Maggie felt a mixture of fascination and horror with the strange couple. Fascination because _Holy shit, it was Wonder Woman_ , and horror because _Holy shit, Wonder Woman's wife was an ass._ And the Amazons were immortal. Which meant that Diana would be tied to that madwoman until the end of time. _Some destinations are worse than death. Five more minutes, Maggie. In five minutes the limo will arrive. I hope they don't argue in the limo too._

When the couple finally finished arguing, Diana noticed her escort's presence. Maggie was momentarily paralyzed by that pure smile. It reminded her a little of Kara's, but it was less innocent, more experienced.

Maggie shook her hand, suppressing a slight moan. _She is so strong._

"Detective Maggie Sawyer." She said. "I'll be your escort on the way and back. Although I know you probably don't need me." She hastened to add as she noticed the redhead opening her mouth. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"No, the pleasure is mine, Miss Sawyer. I still can't get over my astonishment and happiness, thirty years ago it was almost inconceivable that a woman was a police officer."

Maggie smiled.

"Hey, baby warrior." Artemis smiled like the cat that ate the canary. "What happened to your eye? It's a battle wound, right?"

 _A. complete. ass._

"Missy..."

"Let's just say I was attacked by surprise." _By a newspaper_. "Let me tell you both that it's an honour to be here tonight. Really, after all the tense moments we had in National City a few months ago, that you guys are here is incredible. Perhaps the wound left by Lillian Luthor will finally be closed."

Maggie did not notice her mistake until she saw Diana's smile disappear. _Stupid Sawyer!_ said a voice very similar to Alex.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, I forgot you were..."

"Friends." She spat the word dryly. "For the yellow press, lovers. But the truth is that the person I met, has not been her for a long time. Since Lilly decided to do experiments with humans."

"I didn't mean to upset you, I'm sorry."

Diana shrugged. "You live in this city. What is your opinion of Lutessa Luthor? Do you think she is... good person? "

"Excuse me, who?"

"Lillian's daughter. She's taking over the company, I read it a few days ago in the newspaper."

"You mean Lena?"

For a moment, Maggie saw pain in those blue eyes like a clear sky. It was such an unexpected reaction that she then doubted have seen it.

"That's her middle name." Diana replied. "I was there when she was born. She was a very sweet baby, very much like Lillian. You live in this city. Tell me, the actions of that girl in this city, have they been of evil or nobility? I'm asking you as a detective."

Someone knocked on the door. Artemis rose from the couch where she had been sharpening a giant sword, and Diana turned to see who it was. If she had not, she would have seen Maggie's face turn to confusion and surprise.

 _Did she just say 'I was there when she was born'? But... Lena is..._

"The limo has arrived, Diana."

Wonder Woman smiled, and took the hand of her wife, with whom she had been arguing five minutes ago. Maggie followed them, hiding her expression of bewilderment. She feared that if they looked at her too much, someone could see the gears moving in her brain.

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **8:50 PM**

The pastel colored room was spacious, warmly lit by a chandelier. It was the same room Cat had assigned to Princess Maxima of Denmark when she paid a visit to National City. But this time, with considerably fewer people. But with the excitement that floated in the room, it almost seemed like it was filled with a crowd.

Kara Danvers was sitting in the second row, next to an excited cameraman pointing to the empty table that was in front of the eight people sitting in the chairs.

* * *

 **Diana of Themyscira**

 **8:56 PM**

"I want you to be there with me."

"No."

Diana, Artemis, and a couple of helpers whom Mr. Olsen had provided (who seemed to be nervous and could barely take their eyes off the Amazons) were behind the curtain, about to get out.

"Artemis..."

"Did you forget what happened that time when I went to the Parker Lyle's show? Do I have to remind you that only three people left alive?"

"I don't think any of these reporters are demons in disguise, Artemis."

"Doesn't matter. It's not me they want to talk to, Diana. It's you. This is not my moment, it's yours."

"I didn't come back to do this alone." Diana pursed her mouth, her blue eyes glittering. "We are a team. I want this to be your night too, not just mine. I want you to come up with me."

"Diana..." Artemis smiled, stroking her cheek. "No."

Diana sighed and leaned against the caress, losing herself for the thousandth time in those green eyes. "You are my Wonder Woman, Artemis. I can't do this without you."

"You won't." The redhead came over and kissed her lips. "But now go and dazzle them. I'll make sure there are no demons in disguise."

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **9:00 PM**

Kara saw Maggie momentarily, standing in a corner of the room. She raised her hand to salute her sister's girlfriend, who returned the gesture a little distracted. _Wow, she must be very excited._

"Stop behaving like a five-year-old, ponytail." Snapper whispered to her.

"I'm sorry. She's my friend, sir. "

"This is no time to say hello to your friends. Focus your mind on work, and don't dare to screw up this, or I swear you'll do the fire reports for the next..."

Snapper left his sentence incomplete, as he and the rest of the journalists rose from their chairs to salute Diana of Themyscira with applause.

Kara almost broke her pen when she saw the Amazon smile.

* * *

 **The incident at Parker Lyle's show: "Artemis: Requiem" Number four.**


	5. The Interview

**J'onn Jonzz**

 **9:05 PM**

J'onn Jonzz released the communicator in frustration, rubbing his eyes tiredly. He relaxed his back against M'gann's couch. The Martian stood for five seconds with his eyes closed, silent. When he opened them, he was pleasantly surprised to see that M'gann was holding out double stuffed Oreo cookies, smiling sympathetically.

"I'm sorry." Said J'onn smiling a little. "I'm not being very fun company tonight."

"What's wrong?" M'gann sat down next to him.

"It was Mon-El." J'onn took a cookie, enjoying its flavour. "I sent him on a mission to Blüdhaven with twenty soldiers, where we received reports that the tamaranean escaped from Cadmus is hidden. Turns out the tamaranean wasn't even there." He ate another cookie. "It was a demon, so Mon-El's mission was interfered with the Hellenders. You haven't had a bad day until Raven Roth calls you to tell you not to get into her business."

"But nobody was hurt, right?"

"Oh yes. Each and every one of them, but they'll be fine." J'onn ate two cookies together. Once he swallowed, he continued. "One of my men needed a butt transplant."

"What?"

"Yes." J'onn shook his head sadly. "It is difficult to prepare humans to fight against aliens. But fighting with a demon is different. They were lucky to get out alive."

M'gann sighed and tried to grab a cookie. J'onn pushed them away from her.

"M'gann, the only thing that keeps my day from being totally bad, is these cookies. I'm sorry."

M'gann looked at him in disbelief, shaking her head. She took the remote control and turned the television on, looking for something interesting to watch. J'onn followed the change of channels without interest, thinking of ways to train his men more efficiently.

 _"In the news today, The President Olivia-"_ ***Plack*** _"The investigation against Lena Luthor-"_ ***Plack*** _"We left the chocolate two minutes more in the oven and..."_ ***Plack*** _"Why did you leave...? **"**_ ***Plack***

"M'gann, go back! "

"J'onn?"

"Go back!"

Miss Martian did as J'onn told her. On CatCo TV, the cameras focused on a beautiful woman with black hair and blue eyes sitting at a desk, being interviewed by Snapper Carr. The headline read **SHE IS BACK.**

To M'gann's surprise, J'onn smiled. He smiled as genuinely as the time Alex and Kara had prepared an Oreo cake for his birthday. _By all the sacred,_ J'onn's smile was as strange as it was beautiful, despite having some chocolate spots.

"You know her?"

"Yes, I know her." J'onn looked at his partner. "Do you remember that little word I have on my back? It is the Greek word for "friendship". She did it for me many years ago."

"Next to the lightning-shaped scar?"

The smile gone. "Yes... And her wife made that scar."

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **9:05 PM**

Alex Danvers was eating popcorn on her sister's couch when Lena came out of her bedroom. The chocolate-eyed woman raised her eyebrows. It wasn't every day you saw Lena Luthor wearing a Supergirl T-shirt.

"What?"

"You know..." Alex smirked and set the popcorn on the table. "When you started dating Kara, I thought _'This woman is going to change my sister._ ' I could not have been further from the truth. Kara turned you into a nerd."

"Well, Alex, I'm allowed to be a nerd in my own house. Plus, this is nothing compared to the clothes I had an hour ago." Lena sat down next to her girlfriend's sister, reaching for the remote. "Do you want something to drink?"

"Well, considering my sister forbade me from drinking alcohol near you, I had to choose the second best option." Alex reached behind the couch for a bottle of carrot juice.

Lena frowned. "Carrot juice?"

"What? It's delicious actually. Maggie loves it."

"I hate carrots."

"Nerd."

Lena rolled her eyes. Alex switched on the TV, looking for CatCo TV in the channel list.

"Did Kara tell you who they were going to be interviewing?" Lena asked.

"She tried," she answered without looking at her. "Her words were more or less ' _Alex, I have a secret mission that I have to tell you._ ' but I didn't let her finish the sentence. I asked her if it was dangerous, she said no, and then I forbade her from telling me. But she told me it would be exciting."

"Is it not adorable how Kara is so loyal to her loved ones?" Lena smiled. "I told her the same thing. That it was better to leave it as a surprise. And her cheeks inflated, like an angry puppy. And then I kissed her. And then she…"

"Okay, Luthor, enough, we're talking about my little sister."

Alex finally found CatCo TV. Her mouth opened, her eyes flashed, and she nodded a couple of times. That was her only sign of the childish bliss that had fallen on her, like a brick wall.

 **SHE IS BACK**

 _"Why did you leave...?"_

"Oh my God, is that Wonder Woman?"

Alex turned to Lena, to find the brunette with her mouth slightly open. Lena closed her lips in a thin line, her thumbs circling.

"Lena?"

Luthor blinked a couple of times. "It's okay, Alex. Let us hear what they're saying."

Alex felt a pang of pity for her sister's girlfriend. "She was a friend of your mother's, was she not?"

"Lillian never talked much about her, or let anyone else. Anyways, it was before they adopted me." She shrugged. "It seems that there will be yet another person in the city with a grudge against the Luthors. And she has super strength."

"Come on, it's Wonder Woman. I don't think she's going to judge you for something your family did." Alex rubbed her shoulder. "But just incase we're wrong, don't forget that Kara also has super strength."

* * *

 **Wonder Woman**

 **9:00 PM**

Diana sat at the desk, her eyes on each of the reporters and the two cameramen as well. The room was warm, well lit. People were happy to see her, and Diana was happy to see them too. It was at that magical moment that she remembered why she had become Wonder Woman in first place. Not only because of the sense of duty to be an ambassador of her people ( _Alexa does that job more than well now, thank you very much_ ), but also to bring hope to people. Fight for them, be strong for them, and teach them to fight and to be strong for themselves. _But can I be strong again? Of course I can. Artemis is right, I can, I want, and I must do this._

There were eight reporters; four older men, a woman with Asian features, a Latin man who looked like a teenager, a older woman and a young blond girl with glasses.

"Good evening everyone." Said Diana using the microphone. "It's indescribably wonderful for me to be here tonight. I still marvel at how the man's world has changed. Being here again feels like a dream come true. A dream that includes returning to fight for this world. And I want every man, woman and child in the whole world to know that wherever I go, I will fight for them with all that I have."

Her voice didn't hesitate once, but Diana was quite nervous. _I am the Princess of Themyscira, of course I can do this_. Diana saw the blonde reporter, smiling widely. _Everything will be fine._

Mr. Olsen, standing in a corner and talking directly to the camera, brought the microphone to his lips. **"The interview starts. The floor is yours Lucas Carr."**

A bald man, with a beard of some days, rose from his seat. "Good evening, Diana. As you will guess, many of those present here and the viewers watching from home, are from the generation that grew up hearing of your adventures. And yet, thirty years later, we still don't know why you disappeared overnight. My question can't be other than, why did you leave? And why have you decided to return now?"

 _Mommy!_

Diana was expecting exactly that question. _Smile as if you have all the answers, and if you have to embellish the truth a bit, do it,_ Myndi Mayer's voice said in her mind.

"My long absence wasn't planned. Unfortunately, Mr. Carr, the years don't work the same for me. Maybe thirty years have passed, but I feel like it was just yesterday that I was here." _Playing with my sun and stars at the tickling war._ "When I left thirty years ago, my home needed me."

"Many of us felt abandoned when you disappeared. How do we know you won't leave again tomorrow?"

 _Careful, Diana._

"I'm very sorry if anyone felt abandoned. I would like to apologize for all my years of absence. The last thing I wanted was for you to lose faith in me. However, other heroes have done a great job protecting the world. This country has always been full of heroes. Like Supergirl and Superman these days. At no time were you alone."

It seemed that Carr was going to keep asking questions, but Mr. Olsen picked up the microphone again.

 **"Thank you, Mr. Carr. Linda Park, you may begin."**

The woman with Asian features rose from her seat.

"Good evening, Wonder Woman. You said you found the man's world a lot better. Does that mean that you think we've advanced as a society? That there aren't as many problems as thirty years ago?"

"Evil will always exist in the world, Miss Park," Diana replied. "That is why it's important that good also exists, to fight against evil. But without a doubt, I notice a change for the better, in equality for example. Since I arrived I have seen female policemen, female soldiers, and a female president. No doubt I have returned to a world much more beautiful than I imagined. And I want to help keep it changing for the better."

 **"Thank you very much, Miss Park. Now you're up, Vicki Vale"** said Mr Olsen.

The mature blonde got up from the chair. She looked vaguely familiar. _Wasn't there a Vicki Vale in Gotham thirty years ago?_

"Your former friendship with Lillian Luthor is well known. Did you ever perceive her true nature? Did you break the friendship because of that? Do you have anything to say about her actions? "

Diana was surprised that the mention of Lilly's name ( _Mrs Luthor, Diana_ ) still hurt so much.

 _"Diana, what is this? A blue nut?"_

 _"It's a peach heart." Diana smiled. "In Themyscira they mean different things: golden for love, green for courage... blue is for friendship."_

 _"And I bet you want to give the golden one to a certain redhead, right?"_

 _"What?" Diana blushed. "Don't say such foolishness. Artemis is insufferable, arrogant, violent ... "_

 _"Beautiful…"_

 _"Beauti-No! And stop laughing! You better give me that back."_

It took Diana a few seconds to answer Vicki Vale's question.

"My friendship with Lillian Luthor occurred centuries ago. We were different people in a different world." Out of the corner of her eye, Diana saw the blond girl play nervously with her pen. "Everything I can say about Lillian boils down to this: she's the smartest woman I've ever met, and it's a shame she decided to use her intelligence to hurt people. Many times I told her that there is a fine line between right and wrong. Lillian crossed that line anyway. That made me learn that some people are just bad, and that there is nothing you can do to change that…"

 ***FLAP***

Diana and everyone turned in the direction of the blonde girl, who picked up her notebook from the floor, apologizing in a low voice. The man next to her turned as red as Artemis's hair. The girl seemed to want the earth to swallow her. _Poor girl._

"...Just learn to protect yourself and the rest of the world."

 **"Thank you, Miss Vale. Now, take the floor Kara... "**

"Diana!"

Artemis appeared behind the curtain, a giant sword in her left hand. The whole room was stunned. The redhead approached the microphone on the table, taking it.

"Okay, ladies and gentlemen, this interview is postponed for now."

"Missy, what...?"

"There is a massive fire in the building next to the square."

No more words were needed. Wonder Woman got up from the chair and followed her wife.

* * *

 **Martian Manhunter**

 **9:34 PM**

 _"...in the building next to the square."_

"J'onn, isn't that where...?"

"Kara and Luthor."

J'onn J'onzz got up from the couch and hurried out the door.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **9:34 PM**

 _"…in the building next to the square."_

Kara watched as Wonder Woman and the other woman ran away. The room became a mess. Snapper gave her a deadly look before getting up and ordering the cameramen to take the cameras and follow the Amazons. They obeyed, and soon everyone was crowding in the windows on the right, trying to contemplate what was happening.

Kara could not see, but she could certainly hear the roar of the flames _in the building where she lived with her girlfriend._

 _LENA!_

"Kara!"

Kara ignored James as she ran, unbuttoning her shirt.

* * *

 **Lena Luthor**

 **9:36 PM**

Lena had to leave for a moment; all her confused feelings were only increasing.

Alex and she got up from the couch and ran to the window. Undoubtedly, a strange purple fire was devouring a couple of floors below. For a few seconds they could see a violet and black figure flying.

"Damn it!" Alex said taking her gun.

"Alex, what the hell is that!?"

"The tamaranean who escaped from Cadmus a month ago! And I think... "

Alex and Lena stepped back when the window broke. Lena felt like a train was crashing into her, and before she knew it, her whole body hit the wall. At some point, she could hear Alex growl. They were being held by the neck by a ( _woman?_ ) with orange skin, black hair and furious eyes. She smiled angrily.

"Karpo ha Komand'r. Trak knork pra Glubnorb?"

"We don't speak your language," Alex snarled at her with deadly eyes.

Then the alien did the last thing Lena would have thought she would do. She kissed Alex on the lips.

"Well, now that you can understand me. I said... " she tightened her grip. "I am Blackfire. Which one of you is the bitch? Which of you is Lena Luthor?"

 _Why always me?_

* * *

 **Tamaranean learn languages by kissing people.**


	6. In the Blackest Night

**Thanks for your support! If you took the time to leave a review I would appreciate it a lot. (ThankYou Jemjo storys, , oftherose13, TheoMoose, and Synergy :D )**

* * *

 **The Prisoner**

 **9:10 PM**

"Don't hold up the line, Luthor."

Lillian ignored the guards, but they held her by the arms and "escorted" her to a table in the prison cafeteria.

 _If I ever get the chance, I'll turn this place into a bonfire._

The former director of Cadmus was left alone with her lunch, in the middle of the large room. The place was far from peaceful and quiet, as she would have preferred. Dozens of voices rose in the room and there was also a television on. Other prisoners have seen the commotion of her arrival, now watching her with amusement.

 _You don't deserve even a thought of mine._

Suddenly silence swept throughout the room. Lillian Luthor was surprised, and she looked around trying to find out what had happened. All the inmates were staring at the television.

Mrs. Luthor couldn't hear from where she was, but the sight of a tall woman in a blue and red suit was perfectly clear. For a second, she thought she was the damn-a-thousand-times Supergirl. Until she noticed black hair.

Lillian dropped her fork.

 _No._

On television, Wonder Woman smiled at the camera. In very large letters, the title of the news said **SHE IS BACK.**

 _No. You didn't have to come back. You had to stay on your island. You didn't have to come back. Oh, Diana…_

Lillian put a hand to her mouth, to hide the grimace of terror that couldn't be erased. Her body began to tremble. _Lutessa._

 _Diana... You are condemning us all. You should have stayed on your island. Now I don't have any other option._

She left her lunch untouched. In silence, she returned to her cell, took the paper and pencil she had hidden under her bed, and began to write. After a few minutes, she allowed herself to take a look at the book she had hidden inside her mattress.

 _Some day you will understand._

* * *

 **Supergirl**

 **9:38 PM**

Kara barely felt the wind roaring hard against her hair. Her fists were tightly clenched, so much so that she forced herself to open her hands _._

 _If I have to break my fingers, let it be against that alien's face._

Kara's heart shrank when she saw the purple flames. The building was burning. The screams of terror of all the people inside were heard at a great distance. She could hear the gusts of wind, fear, terror...

The alien had Alex and Lena in each of her hands. Kara watched in horror as the tamaranean threw them into the void.

 _NO_

Kara rushed to save them. She managed to reach Alex first, then Lena. She landed noisily on the floor with the two most important women of her life on each arm.

"Are you okay?"

Totally unkempt, they both nodded.

"I'm the target," Lena said. "She's coming for-"

Kara felt like her whole body was hit by a ton of bricks. The tamaranean had grabbed her and slammed her through a concrete wall. Blackfire wasted no time talking, attacking Kara with quick kicks and punches. Kara managed to catch her arm and unleash a deadly punch on her face. Blackfire's nose broke, but that didn't even make her falter. Her elbow hit Kara's teeth. Kara retaliated by smashing her opponent's head against the wall, breaking concrete.

That's when she saw Diana. The Amazon had two small children in her arms, who she left on the floor. The children ran. Supergirl and Wonder Woman exchanged a silent look of understanding. _Go help them_ , Kara's eyes shouted. Diana nodded and flew back to the building.

Blackfire forced herself out of Supergirl's grip using her legs to kick Kara in her head. She wasn't as strong as the blonde hero was, but she was swift in her attacks. Her hands glittered in purple and she threw starbolts at the Kryptonian. Kara dodged them all running quickly toward her, and then threw punches that didn't impact. The tamaranean, to her later shame, used the Kara's cape to blind her, as in the Roulette's fights long ago. And so, with her face caught in her own cape, Supergirl received **_a blow_** that made her see stars. Blood pooled in her mouth. _I can't believe this._

"HEY!"

 _No, please, Lena, don't be an idiot._

"Hey you, Bitchfire! Aren't you here to kill me?! You can't kill me if you don't catch me!"

Kara felt the tamaranean release her.

 _No, no, come back, get away from her!_

Kara stood up. She was almost drowning in her own blood, until she managed to remove her cape from above and coughed blood violently. Her ankle ached like hell.

 _Please Rao, my ankle isn't broken, I have to save Lena, I have to ..._

"K-Supergirl!" Alex ran to her, her expression deadly concerned at the sight of blood. "Calm down, hold on a little longer, I need you ..."

"L-Le..."

"If you want to help Lena, help me break the window of that store!"

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **9:49 PM**

Alex caught sight of Lena petrified for a moment, her eyes horrified at Supergirl being beaten by the fast alien. Then she ran to a store she saw in front of the street, trying to break the window. But the window was bulletproof, so the DEO agent started kicking the door to open it. Alex saw out of the corner of her eye the red-haired Amazon leaving the burning building with at least three people on her shoulders. She tossed them unceremoniously on the floor and returned inside.

"'No! Come back! She needs you!" She heard Lena shout.

"The three hundred people in the building need her too, Lena!" Alex shouted, still trying to get into the household goods store.

"What the hell are you doing!?"

"Many tamaraneans are allergic to metallic chromium! There must be something in there to stop that bitch! If only I could- LENA!"

Alex watched in horror as Lena started throwing rocks at the alien.

"HEY!" Luthor yelled angrily. "Hey you, Bitchfire! Aren't you here to kill me?! You can't kill me if you don't catch me! "

Alex could not help but swear when she saw the brunette start running down the street.

* * *

 **Lena Luthor**

 **9:50 PM**

Lena Luthor used to play tennis at boarding school. Not because she liked sports, but because she used to like seeing the players in those short skirts. But then Veronica Sinclair joined the club, and not even all the short skirts in the world were worth it. _"Hey Luthor, if you want we can have a private tennis match, wouldn't you like it?"_ so Lena left.

 _But If I had stayed, I'm sure I would have learned how to run faster._

"LUUUTHOR!"

A starbolt brushed past her head, burning off a few inches of her hair. Lena ducked her head, avoiding the next starbolt.

 _That's it, stay away from Kara. Concentrate on me_.

Lena sincerely hoped that Kara would take advantage of the distraction, and attack the tamaranean, or recover herself. _I don't care, you have no idea what you've gotten yourself into._

Thanking the fact that she had no heels on, Lena entered a mall that was already closing. The people inside screamed in terror and fled. Blackfire, from the air, didn't stop throwing flaming starbolts at her. Lena could only look, horrified, as one of them hit a cleaning woman. The mall was dark, but Lena could see by the violet flames of her attacker.

"You are going to pay for all the years they took me away! I'm going to annihilate all the Luthors! Starting with you, glubnorb!"

Lena entered a toy store with the lights off. _It seems that the owner left everything and fled._ That was good. In the toy store she could hide; she ran behind shelves containing soccer balls, and moved forward to enter the store, trying to be as quiet as possible.

A violet glow entered the tent.

"You hide like a coward, Luthor. You are all cowards. From your brother, the psychopath, to your mother, the bitch who wrote in her notebook while they injected me with so many substances that I couldn't even remember my name. I'm going to take your head to your mother and force her to eat it."

The glow moved slowly, moving through different places in the toy store. That was good for Lena, she could know exactly where the alien was and walk away in silence from her.

 ** _Until Blackfire extinguished her flames and everything went dark._**

The brunette could imagine the _predatory_ smile on her assailant's face.

Lena was stunned by the sound of her own heart, trying to move forward without making a sound. For a moment of panic, Lena realized she had no idea where she had come from or where she was going. She tried to spread her hands a little, to know what was around her. She felt a soft, small, hairy texture, recognizing too late what it was.

The Supergirl dolls began to sing.

 _*It's a bird? It's a plane? Nooo my friends! Its Supergirl! Its a bird Its a plane? Nooo my friends! Its Supergirl! It's…?*_

"AAAHAHHH!"

The Tamaranean's hand appeared through the shelf, closing in her hair. The dolls flew. The hand pulled her hair very hard, and Lena's body traversed the shelf. Blackfire dragged Lena by the whole clump of hair, causing groans of pain in the human.

"Well, it was fun. But it did little to postpone the inevitable." Her hand flashed.

"I'm not... like them." Lena tried to say. "I don't want to... harm anyone. I want to do good things."

"No matter if you're a Luthor Bumgorf, you're still one of them. You couldn't do good things even if you tried. And frankly, Bungorf, I don't care if you try or... "

Blackfire wasn't able to finish the sentence. From who knows where, an arrow pierced the wrist of the alien. The bloody tip of the arrow caressed Lena's nose and left it stained. Supergirl caught the Tamaranean in her strong arms, squeezing her with all her force. And out of nowhere, Alex Danvers sank a glowing knife into the alien's ribs.

* * *

 **Artemis Of Bana-Mighdall**

 **10:30 PM**

The Amazon cleaned the blood of her arrow while walking, although this one could no longer be used. Returning to the building, she saw the cameras maddened with Diana, and her beloved and poor wife was looking for her. Once Diana saw her, she excused herself from the cameramen and went to her wife.

"Are you hurt? What happened?"

"Three burns, one at the wrist. But that didn't stop me from throwing an arrow at that... thing. The girl she was chasing was taken to an ambulance by Supergirl and the other warrior. You're fine?"

"I saved as many as I could, but..."

They were separated by the journalists, shouting questions as they rushed to them. Artemis chased away the reporters, who retreated scared, but stayed close enough to take pictures. One of them, a black man in a green shirt, didn't leave.

"I told you to stay away!"

Instead of retreating, the man smiled a little. His eyes flashed in red as he turned to see Diana.

"It's been a long time, old friend."

Diana blinked a couple of times. "J'onn?"

 _Great, we found him early._

"Diana." He smiled. "... Artemis."

"Weren't you green?"

 _"Artemis."_

"With this change, I have achieved a better life." J'onn put his hands behind his back. "I'm sorry we find ourselves in these circumstances. My men are taking the tamaranean right now. Agent Danvers' metallic chromium has left her weak, but she must be put into custody before she regains her strength."

"Your men?"

J'onn nodded. "I run the DEO."

"Oh, J'onn, that's incredible! Congratulations. I'm very happy that you have found your place in the... "

 _And here we go again. I had almost forgotten how her eyes shine when she's with her friends._ Artemis smiled, watching their conversation. Nobody would say that Diana has spent fifteen years without smiling. _We should have left Themyscira before._

"So Supergirl works with you," Diana said, watching her fists. "I think I should go see her. During the fight, she could have asked for help, but instead she faced the alien alone so I could save people from the building. She's a real warrior. "

"Yes, she is." J'onn smiled a little.

"Did you say she was with that girl in the ambulance, Missy?"

Artemis nodded and her wife headed for the ambulances. The redhead was alone with the Martian, who smiled at her mysteriously.

"What? Do I have something on my face? "

J'onn shrugged. "You look different."

"It's the hair loose, you'd be surprised how many people don't recognize me."

"You look happy."

Artemis smiled sadly. _Almost, Martian, almost._ "I can still tear you like a cloth sack, don't test me. I already showed it to you once."

"And my back doesn't need another demonstration, thank you very much." J'onn folded his arms. "You know, It's difficult to prepare soldiers to face beings who could destroy them with their own hands. And the Amazons have a characteristic fighting style. Are you interested?"

Artemis' eyes widened in surprise. "You want me to train your men?"

"I want my men to stop dying for every super-strong alien that attacks us." J'onn looked into her eyes, totally frank, as Artemis remembered. "I know that in war there will always be a certain number of casualties. But if to lower that number I have to endure your tongue, I'm willing to do so. "

 _Is he trusting me? After how rude I was with him years ago?_ The redhead felt something on her chest shrink. _Well... anyway I need something to keep me busy._

"Fine, I will turn your soldiers into warriors. But as early as now, I warn you that I will only work with those who are willing to work with me. I won't stand crybabies."

"J'onn?" a woman approached. Artemis recognized her as the warrior who had reduced the alien. "The Tamaranean has been transferred."

"We'll take care of her when she wakes, Agent Danvers."

The warrior ( _Agent Danvers_ ) smiled at her.

"We haven't been formally introduced. I'm Agent Danvers."

"It's my pleasure," Artemis said sincerely. Every inch of that woman screamed 'warrior'. "You acted like an Amazon in that toy store, Agent Danvers."

To her surprise, Danvers shrugged.

"It's my job to do that, miss...?"

"It's not necessary to be formal. Any woman who bravely fights against someone stronger can call me Art- "

 _"ARTEMIS!"_

Diana's voice broke the conversation.

 ** _"ARTEMIS!"_**

She ran.

* * *

 **Lena Luthor**

 **10:15 PM**

Her head ached, both from her ripped hair and from Kara's screams. The nurse had left the ambulance once she had made sure that Lena was all right and that Alex only had a split lip, giving Kara all the freedom to shout at her girlfriend. Alex had the good sense to close the ambulance door.

 ** _"Are you an idiot?! You realize she could have killed you-"_**

 _"She was hurting you, Kara! What did you expect me to do? That I-"_

 ** _"-if we hadn't found that knife and if the Amazon hadn't appearred?!"_**

 _"-while she attacked you for me?!"_

 ** _"But that's just my job! I could fight her! I could-"_**

 _"No, you couldn't! Damn it, just watch how-"_

It was that moment, more or less, when Alex decided that she had had enough and went out to look for J'onn.

The couple argued angrily inside the ambulance for about five more minutes. At some point in the argument, when Kara was mentioning something about super strength and odds, Lena found herself leaping into Kara's lap and kissing her voraciously. Supergirl lifted her into her arms and cornered her against the stretcher, climbing over her. She ached all over. Kara was hurt. And she could think of at least ten reasons why she shouldn't be kissing Supergirl in an ambulance less than three meters away from reporters and cameramen.

Kara put an arm around her neck and a hand carefully down her back, to the brunette's buttocks. Supergirl squeezed them gently, swallowing Lena's groan, as if the brunette's heavy breathing was the most delicious song in the world. Lena was not ready for the sudden, hot, dampness that made itself known between her legs, and Kara's movements and caresses only increased it. Lena felt the pair of injured lips brush on her neck in tortuous movements.

After they almost, _almost_ ended up having sex, Kara let out a groan of frustration and stood totally still, breathing heavily on Lena's lips. Lena felt a couple of tears moisten her lips.

"Khap zhao rrip," Kara whispered. "Don't you dare die."

"You neither."

* * *

 **Supergirl**

 **10:50**

Kara watched Lena run a hand through her disastrous hair. After the moment they had passed, no one should care that Lena looked so untidy, but her girlfriend didn't want any paparazzi to take a picture of her in that state. As if that weren't enough, with a Supergirl T-shirt that urgently needed to be washed. _The world of business is strange._

"There's no way- I'll have to cut my hair to fix this." Lena pointed to the mess in her head. She sighed sadly. "Will I still look beautiful to you with shorter hair?"

"You would be beautiful even if you were bald."

"God, no. I'm trying to separate my image from Lex's, Kara."

A slight knock on the ambulance door distracted the couple. Kara gasped as she saw who was behind the door. _Oh, Rao!_

"Who is it?"

"It's... it's Wonder Woman."

Lena half opened her mouth and bit her lip, shaking her head. "I figured sooner or later she'd want to meet Supergirl. I just wish her first impression of me wasn't... like this... "

"Did you notice that in the interview she said your phrase? The one about people who are just bad. Wasn't it exciting? I was very surprised and that's why I dropped the..."

"Better open the door, Puppy."

"Okay."

Supergirl opened the ambulance door, being immediately blinded by the golden eagle of Wonder Woman's suit. Diana of Themyscira was smiling genuinely. _Is she smiling like that for me? Did I do something that pleased her?_

"Well... Hello, Supergirl." Diana held out her hand, and Kara clasped it with her own almost too quickly. "It's nice to meet you at last, though I wish it were in better circumstances."

"I wish the same too," Kara said, smiling broadly. She hadn't felt so excited since the president's visit a long time ago. "I'm deeply honored to meet you, really."

"The honor is mine, Supergirl. I've seen you fight bravely out there. But I think what pleased me most was watching you team up with that other woman to beat the alien. Knowing how to work as a team is a gift." Diana smiled. Kara also smiled and had the urge to adjust her missing glasses.

Diana seemed to notice the other woman's gaze, next to the blonde. "You're the woman who was being chased by that... tamaranean, right?" Supergirl nodded. "Are you alright? Do you know why she was after you? "

Kara watched Lena sketch a polite smile, her business-woman smile. "She wouldn't have chased me if my last name was Smith. I've gotten used to them trying to kill me. I'm okay, tha... "

A very curious expression crossed her girlfriend's face.

"…thanks for asking."

Kara would remember later that it was that moment when everything went weird.

Wonder Woman was staring at Lena's face, without blinking. And it would have been less odd if Lena hadn't been giving her exactly the same stare, confused. And Kara suddenly felt like a spectator of a natural phenomenon, like the first time when she had touched the clouds.

"...And may I ask what your name is?" Diana asked in a voice very different from the previous one.

Lena didn't answer. _Is she afraid?_ Kara, feeling a sense of foreboding, imperceptibly approached her girlfriend in a protective gesture. "Diana, is some-?"

"What's your name?" Diana ignored Supergirl.

"I'm... Lena Luthor," she replied from somewhere in the thick cloud that had flooded the ambulance.

Diana's face became a grimace of a thousand mixed emotions, receding a few inches. Kara felt absolutely terrified of that face. Terrified that Diana could hurt the daughter of her former friend. Kara took Lena's arm.

"Okay, we've all had an overwhelming night! We better go now to-"

"It's not true."

"Diana, listen to me, I know you hate her mother but she's a good person. I give you my word."

"She's not Lena Luthor." At no point did her eyes stop looking at Lena.

Kara opened her mouth in disbelief. "Diana, what...?"

"Lutessa Lena Luthor. Blonde hair, blue eyes, freckles on her cheeks. I was there when she was born. You're not her..."

 ** _Crack._** The reality was broken.

"Di-iana." Supergirl stammered. "You must be confused. We don't know any Lutessa. And she's adopted." Kara giggled. "She is adopted..."

Lena reacted, moving away from Kara's side, approaching Diana. Wonder Woman began to tremble imperceptibly.

"I dream about you." Lena's voice seemed to come from another world, one where things made even less sense. "Every night... I dream about you."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"... Tell me ...Do you like carrots?"

Kara tensed, ready to jump.

"I hate carrots."

 ** _"AHHHHH!"_**

Kara put Lena behind her body, but Diana didn't attack her. She stepped back in terror and fell through the ambulance door, landing on the street. Her eyes seemed to be drawn from a tale of terror as she watched the brunette.

" _ARTEMIS! **ARTEMIS!** "_

The cameramen came out of their surprise, taking photographs as if they were being possessed.

"Diana, what...?"

"IT ISN'T TRUE!" She cried. "I SAW YOUR BODY! **I SAW IT!** " Diana put her hands to her head, violently pulling at her hair. "I saw her... I buried what was left of her..." sobs exploded in her throat. "My sun and stars... My precious girl... Lena... Lena..."

Kara had no words to describe how grotesque it was to watch Diana of Themyscira cry violently, lying on the floor. Their cries echoed all over the street. The lights of the cameras illuminated that shadows from another world. Kara was terrified of her own impotence. And Lena advanced to the fallen Amazon, letting herself fall to her side, trying to touch her. Kara could hear them with her super hearing.

 _"D-Dead."_

 _"No."_

" _I-I buried you."_

" _No."_

Alex, J'onn, and Artemis of Bana-Mighdall made their way among the photographers. Alex called her, but Kara didn't even look at her. With the arrival of her wife, Diana stopped crying.

"Artemis, look at her."

The redhead moved her eyes from Lena to Diana, without understanding anything.

"Look at her."

"Diana…"

"Her name is Lena _Luthor_."

"Diana, it's not her." Artemis bowed to her wife's height. "She's gone, Diana, please. She's gone."

"Look at her."

Artemis watched the CEO of L-Corp in a deadly silence. Five seconds passed. Then ten. Finally, a single sob escaped her mouth, and she raised her hand to touch Lena's face. "Lena?" her face convulsed, but she didn't shed a tear. "What did they do to you?... What did they do to you?"

Lena screeched.

Diana was staring into space, her face starved for life. The photographers reacted and started shouting questions. Alex punched one who tried to get too close. With effort, Diana rose from the floor, stumbled, and rose again.

"My baby is... alive." Her head moved at a strange angle. "Lil..." she tried to say, but she couldn't seem to open her mouth. "Li..." Kara watched her, as if contemplating a beautiful storm. "Lillian."

And her brain finally came back to her head.

 ** _"LIIILLIAAAAAAAAN!"_**

Wonder Woman flew out. Supergirl followed her.


	7. As in a Greek Tragedy

**Diana of Themyscira**

 **1983**

Diana never ceased to marvel at Man's World. It was simply fascinating; she would never regret her decision to disobey her mother and go out into the world. However, that day the Amazon felt she would go crazy if she had to rehearse her opening speech with Myndi one more time. At one point, the publicist had lost her temper.

 _'Diana, why aren't you fresh today? Usually it's not difficult for you to say two words together. Hell, you're more eloquent than my grody last husband. You know what? You're under a lot of stress with the opening of the Embassy and all. Go for a walk, take a break, go drink, dance, get a man, or a woman, or hell both! But go clear your mind!'_

So there was Diana, 'clearing her mind' in the only silent place she knew in that massive city, The New York Public Library. She was sitting at one of the tables in the History section, with a book about the poetess Sappho. It was truly hilarious how people in the modern world speculated about her love life, unaware that Sappho had been a cynical and calculated person, who was not interested in knowing love more than through poems. _You would have laughed in their faces, Sapph._

Diana smiled sadly, looking up to see a group of college students with rainbow t-shirts chatting in low voices, with smiles on their faces. _Friends_. Not that Diana was bad at making friends, she liked talking to people and knew how to be good company. But with this whole thing of be a superhero, no one seemed to want to be Diana's friend; they all seemed to be happier being their admirers.

 _Well, it's still better than Themyscira, where many of my sisters have lived so long that they have forgotten how to love_.

Diana rose abruptly from her chair, so much so that she did not see the young woman behind it. The falling of books sounded like thunder. Diana started to apologize, ashamed, trying to help the blonde woman lift the books, but was surprised to see her face. Apparently, the other woman too.

"Wonder Woman?"

"Miss Prior?"

"My last name is Luthor now." She smiled. "My boyfriend and I were married a few months ago. How come you remember my name? We only talked for a few minutes at Lachlan's gala."

"Well, I could hardly forget someone who told me I was endangering public safety." Diana wrinkled her mouth in a smile.

"It wasn't personal, really. But since then you don't shred buildings so much every time a villain turns up, so I think it was worth it."

Diana had to admit that the blonde was right. She was still new in being Wonder Woman at that time. She had needed a complete stranger's constructive criticism, at a party full of rich people, to correct some of her errors. But that was good. Someone had treated her like a real person, not like a pretty face in a colorful outfit.

"I'm so sorry if I was rude that night," she replied, folding her arms.

"It's fine, Lillian. It was a good thing in the end."

"Lilly, please."

Diana smiled a little. It was then that she saw Luthor's belly, slightly swollen, and her guilt multiplied by a thousand. _You almost knocked down a pregnant woman, pay more attention!_ Diana bent down to pick up the books. One was _Dystopian Chicago, by Jeanine Matthews,_ and the other had a cover written in Greek. _Crisis on..._

"Do you know how to read Greek?"

"You'd be surprised how boring it is to be pregnant." She shrugged. "I still work, but from home. God knows where my lab colleagues would be without me." Diana laughed. "The rest of the time, I'm studying. I need to use my head all the time."

"I bet your son will be a genius with so much studying."

"As long as he doesn't become a Steve Jobs-like genius..." Diana frowned. Lillian raised her eyebrows. "You don't know who Steve Jobs is, do you?" At the brunette's confused look, Lillian shook her head. "Come with me; a public figure needs to know how to use an Apple Lisa."

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **11:30 PM**

 **"LIIILLIAAAAAAAAN!"**

Her heart froze.

Alex watched in horror as the furious Amazon rose into the air like a rocket explosion. Her sister, her _wounded_ sister, pushed herself into the air half a second later.

And then everything went to hell.

All cameramen exploded into an infernal cacophony. Alex was surrounded by more cameras, more microphones. She could not see J'onn, she could not see Lena, she could not see her feet. Alex lost her calm and began throwing punches and kicks, without bothering to yell at them to get away. She felt a pang of pain on her temple, and blood streaming down her cheek. One of the cameras had hit her. A shout rose through the cacophony.

 _"Leave. Her. **Alone!** " _

Alex almost fell to the ground when the whole crowd stepped back a little. A fat man nudged her and she lost her breath. She let out a scream of rage and twisted like a wild animal, to get enough space to advance. Her throat started to burn, her punches did not stop hitting people. _Later I'll be bruised as hell. C'mon, you've to help Kara._

When she was finally free, she got to see an orange whirlwind attacking a man. Artemis ripped the camera off him, and broke it with a single kick. The reporters on her left stepped back, but those on her right took advantage of the distraction to approach Lena, who was kneeling on the floor, with her shirt torn and her chin stained with blood

Alex ran, realizing that she had lost a shoe. She ripped the cell phone off the reporter who _('Miss Luthor! Ms. Luthor! Can you explain what's going on?')_ was closest to Lena and threw it away. Then she pushed him, impacting in three frantic men who stumbled.

"Lena! Get up!"

The brunette looked at her, trembling.

"C'MON! We've to get out of here!"

Alex pulled her hard. Lena staggered for a moment, taking Alex's hand as they began to run. For a moment the brunette turned to watch the orange whirlpool, but Alex pulled her, perhaps too hard. The reporters started running after them. Alex cursed her luck of losing her shoe when she stepped on a stone. The flashes of the cameras seemed capable of illuminating the end of the world. They ran, ran until the lights stopped blinding them.

When Alex had begun to believe they had lost them, a green van with at least three cameramen turned the corner. A woman with a microphone shouted ' _Lena! Lena! Are you Wonder Woman's daughter?'_ Not breaking their run at any moment, Alex and Lena went into an alley the van could not reach. Instead of leaving through the other side of the alley, they climbed the fire escape of a building. Alex heard Lena gasp with fatigue. They climbed the stairs to the fifth floor, where Lena could no longer continue. She collapsed against the brick wall, sitting on a step.

Alex wanted to yell for her to get up. They had to find a way to get to the DEO, where she could use Kara's pod to go help her. _I wish I had my communicator radio right now, but I didn't fucking expect my Saturday night to end like this._ Alex was opening her mouth, but never in her life would she have expected Lena Luthor to pounce at the railing and start vomiting.

"Lena!"

Alex held her hair as the tremors shook the CEO's body, her concern now extended to Lena as well. Alex felt every muscle in her body ache as she began rubbing the brunette's back, trying to find reassuring words that simply were not there. She was silent until the other woman stopped vomiting.

She had never seen a person look worse. Her hair was a mess, her shirt was ripped, her hands were dirty, she had blood stains on her chin, and a thin layer of cold sweat covered her body. She was breathing like an eighty-year-old asthmatic woman. And the person who was in that state was Lena Luthor. _Su_ _rely I don't look much better at the moment._

Lena wrapped her arms around herself when she felt the cold wind. Alex took off her black jacket and offered it to her. Lena looked at the jacket as if it were an object from another world, before taking it and putting it on. She was murmuring the word _'lies'_ under her breath, over and over again. Her pupils were tiny.

"Lena..." Alex began softly. "We have to go to the DEO. Kara needs us."

Alex's voice and the mention of Kara's name seemed to make her regain some composure. "What's the plan?"

"Reaching them with Kara's pod, It's the only thing fast and accessible enough. Getting to them is the only chance we have to stop Diana."

"Alex, I'm not a DEO Agent. I don't understand!"

"Lena, to help Kara we have to help Diana." She took her by the shoulders. "And right now, the only person who can do that... is you."

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **00:13 AM**

Maggie drove like crazy, through the streets of National City, chasing the vans of the television networks. She knew she should not have been talking on the phone while driving, but she was not a secret government agent; she was a detective. So, she still did not have a nice Single Wire Earpiece like her girlfriend.

Out of the corner of her eye, Maggie had seen a couple of TVs in a store, with the image of Wonder Woman and Lena Luthor kneeled on the floor. _The whole press had gone mad._ All the TV networks were looking for Lena Luthor all over town. And since her house had just been burned by a Tamaranean, the CEO could be on literally any side of it.

But Maggie had an advantage that the rest did not.

"Yes, Winn, I'm on Baker Street. I don't see them anywhere. Alex's cell must be... Wait! I see them!"

Maggie accelerated and braked next to Alex and _(Oh my God, that's Lena!?)_ the CEO. Her girlfriend was infinitely furious for a second, until she recognized Maggie and her expression changed to one of relief.

"Get in the car!"

Alex and Lena practically jumped in. Maggie started and stepped on the accelerator. Her heart ached when she saw the blood spattered on Alex's ear. In an effort not to crash into another car, she handed Alex the cellphone.

"It's Winn, put it on speaker."

 ***PIP*** " _Alex? Is Lena alright? Are you two alright?"_

"We're fine, Winn. We're on our way."

"What's going on with Kara?" asked Lena.

 _"Kara isn't responding to her ear communicator. And before you get an attack, Alex, she's fine. She is moving towards Stryker's Island. But her communicator must have suffered some damage along the way."_

"Winn, where's J'o- **_AH!_** "

Maggie heard a huge rumble, coming from the top of the car. She almost hit a lamppost, but managed to dodge it in time. The detective had the shock of her life when a red head appeared at the top of her windshield.

"Stop the car!" Artemis shouted angrily. **_"Stop. the car!"_**

Maggie stopped and heard Artemis come down from the car top. Two seconds later, the redhead opened the back door and sat next to an impossibly pale Lena.

 _"Alex!? Maggie!? Lena!? What's going on!?"_

"Are you TOTALLY CRAZY!?" shouted Maggie.

Artemis just looked at Lena. "No one will ever separate me from her again."

* * *

 **The** **Prisoner**

 **0:20 PM**

In her cell, Lillian could only see thanks to a dim light coming from the hallway. That made her have to strain her eyes, and God knew her sight was not as good as before. _There's not much time left._

They had twenty guards standing in the hallway. Obviously, they didn not want to be there protecting a Luthor. Everything was much quieter than normal _. But honestly, who do they want to cheat? The television may be far away, but that scream could have awakened the dead._

She finished writing, putting the paper inside the book. Lillian placed it on the table.

And finally she was able to breathe in peace.

 _Have I failed?_ But strangely, the thought filled her with peace. It was over. _No, it's not over. This is nothing more than the start._

It was a shame that there was no more light in her cell, but she did not need light for what she had to do now. Lillian got up and went to the left wall of her cell, where there was a hiding place, behind a loose table. _T_ _his does not assure me anything._

But then a pair of beloved eyes appeared in her mind, and Lillian shed a single tear before sighing.

* * *

 **Supergirl**

 **00:30 AM**

Kara felt her wounds on her head, hip and jaw torture her. She bit her lip and forced herself to fly faster.

 **"AAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"**

And _Rao's shit_ , she had never seen that pain in her life. Diana looked like another person. For an infinite moment, Kara remembered the red kryptonite, how she had almost killed Cat, and the moment of madness and remorse that followed after that. But Wonder Woman was not under the effect of anything but her own mortal fury.

"Diana, stop!"

The brunette was flying so fast that Kara could hear the sound of her body breaking through the wind. Kara had almost succeeded in reaching her. _Only a few more feet... a few more inches._..

"Diana!"

Wonder Woman whirled in the air and quickly grabbed her shoulder. Kara was thrown into the air in an uncontrollable swirl, landing in a lake in a forest. Her back hit the water and the cold went straight into her wounds. A small electric shock came from her ear. _Damn, it's broken. Now I can't communicate with the DEO._

Kara came out of the water with a **_SPLASH_.** Diana's figure had grown smaller in the distance. Watching the forest, Kara had an idea. She plucked a tree without ceasing to fly at incredible speed, and threw it at the figure of the Amazon. She failed by a few inches, only managing to alert Wonder Woman. Kara plucked out another tree and tried again. Diana smashed the tree in one fell swoop. Kara plucked off two trees at the same time. Diana gave a mortal turn in the air and the trees were destroyed against each other.

The forest disappeared. Nightly fields and bug noises spread out before Kara _. She's faster than me, I'm going to lose her._ Kara screamed in frustration. _I'm sorry._

She used her heat vision.

Wonder Woman let out a short moan of pain and lost speed. It was all Kara needed. The Kryptonian crashed into ( _Lena's mother?_ ) Wonder Woman and both ended up entangled in an impossible knot of groans and super strength. Kara knew that Diana had much more experience in combat and could overcome her quickly, so she took full advantage of the brunette's injured leg and threw her towards a farm. _I'm sorry. I'm so-_

At an impossible speed, Diana left the farm and propelled herself against Kara.

They both crashed into a mill, destroying it. They ended up hitting the earth, creating a crater around them. Kara didn't want to get up. Her body was so hurt that she could not remember why she was doing this _. Oh, yes, because a Wonder Woman crazed with pain is a worldwide threat._

The brunette began to rise.

"Diana... please." Kara's voice sounded hoarse. "You're not thinking clearly."

The brunette looked at her in disbelief and perhaps some remorse. "Don't get caught up in this." Diana staggered, almost fell, and started to walk slowly; hurt. "I don't want to hurt you."

"You want to hurt a person."

"I don't want to hurt a person, I want to execute a traitor!" Diana turned to see her, the infinite pain painted on her face. "You fought Lillian, remember? Do you remember who she is?"

"You can't..."

"SHE WAS MY FRIEND!" Diana's voice cracked again. "SHE WAS MY FRIEND AND SHE MADE ME BURY MY BABY DAUGHTER FOR THIRTY YEARS! DO YOU KNOW HOW OLD I AM!? EVERY SECOND WITHOUT LENA HAS BEEN AS IF SOMEONE HAD RIPPED MY HEART OUT AND FED THE CERBERUS WITH IT! WHY THE FUCK SHOULDN'T I KILL HER!?" Diana put her hands to her chest, pressing because of the pain. Kara tried to get to her feet. "She was my friend..." Kara saw the wound on her leg, skin mostly burned, and yet Diana was standing. "And she took my Sun and Stars away from me." Diana smiled, shrugging her shoulders. "I'll throw her off from a cliff."

"You can't kill your daughter's mother."

Diana stepped back as if she had been slapped. "She's not…"

"For Lena, Lillian's her mother." Kara got to her feet. "A mother of whom she's deeply ashamed. I think part of her even hates her. But she's always worried about her. When she was arrested, Lena made sure Lillian went to Stryker's Island instead of a bad prison. All Lena wanted was a family, and they've already destroyed her heart too many times. Are you going to destroy her heart too?"

Diana was not looking into her eyes. Kara was not even sure she was looking at something. The pain all over her body screamed in unison; Kara had reached her limit. _I can't anymore_.

"... Are you a friend of hers?"

"I am."

"You're in love with her." Diana still did not look at her. "Don't bother denying it. You talk the same way I talked about Artemis when everybody said she wasn't good enough."

Diana walked slowly, watching Kara's feet. Once she was close enough, she brought her hand to her waist, to take her lasso.

"Will not you hurt her?" asked Kara.

Diana finally met her eyes. "I have a choice?... But there is something you have to do if you really want to save Lillian's life, Supergirl... Take my lasso. It has the power to force people to tell the truth." She put her lasso in Supergirl's hands. "If I approach her, I'll kill her. So I'm going to stay here and wait for you." A couple of tears streamed down her cheeks. "Go and ask her why she wanted to kill me on the inside."

Kara looked at her in disbelief. "It is a maximum security prison, in the middle of the night. They will not let me in."

"If you don't enter the easy way, I enter the hard way."

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **0:50**

Supergirl had no choice but to fly to the prison, slowly, impossibly more tired than she had felt in a long time. The lights of Metropolis looked like a mirage, impossible to reach.

She tried to arrive as conspicuously as possible, prepared for what she would have to do. Her head had finally had a moment of stillness and, naturally, with that came the thoughts. _Holy Rao, Lena. What do I have to do to stop you from suffering?_ All she knew was that she could not allow Lillian to die under any circumstances.

She was not ready for the reception she found.

The prison yard was filled with nervous guards, who sighed with relief once they saw Supergirl. _They must have television here. Calm down, Kara, just ask to speak to the boss. He'll give you permission. You have to do it. Oh, Rao, I don't know what I'm going to do. I have to use the lasso on Luthor no matter what it takes, I'm done with secrets and lies._

"Supergirl."

Before she had finished down the prison yard, Kara looked stupidly at her sister, who had a giant elephant tranquilizer rifle. _Okay, it's official, this day was too long and I fell asleep_. But Alex looked real enough.

"Alex." Kara wanted to blink, but she was afraid of falling asleep. "How did you get here so fast?"

"We used your pod, we arrived ten minutes ago."

"We?"

Alex was acting weird. "I brought Lena with us. I thought she could reassure Diana."

"I've left her twelve miles from here, but nothing can reassure Diana." Kara looked away. "Still, I managed to persuade her not to kill Lillian Luthor. But only if I..." Kara showed her the lasso. "I have to get answers anyway. Where's Lena?"

"She's fine, easy. But she's a little... hysterical."

"Alex?" Kara could not take any more emotion. "Tell me what happened, and tell me now."

Kara felt a little remorse for being rude to her sister, but the little energy that remained in her body did not allow it to be too much.

"When we got there, we had a plan," Alex began. "Move Luthor to a different cell. And when you and Diana appear, 'reassure' Wonder Woman with these sedatives. But..." Alex bit her mouth. "Lillian must have known in some way that Diana was coming. I'm afraid it won't be possible to make her talk. She has injected herself with some kind of drug. She's unconscious. Whatever is going on here, that woman preferred to induce herself in a coma over opening her mouth."

* * *

 **BONUS:**

 **Somewhere in New York...**

Lucy Lane was at the airport, looking for a bathroom. When she found it, she went in and soaked her face in the sink. Her plane would take off in an hour, and she was too tired to... exist.

She turned to leave, and it was then that she noticed that the door had a sign in black letters. **Broken latch, only opens on the outside.**

 _What? But what the hell? What kind of idiot would put that sign inside the bathroom instead?_ Lucy tried to force the door, but it would not budge. _Alright, Lane, easy. Just wait for someone else to come and open the doo_ r.

Twenty minutes passed, in which her only amusement was counting the floor tiles, until at last the door opened. Sadly, the woman had headphones on and was looking at her cellphone.

"Don't close the...!" ***BAM*** "...door."

The woman looked at her in confusion, and then Lucy recognized Vasquez.

"Susan?"

"Lucy?" Vasquez took off her headphones. "What's going on?"

"The door only opens from the outside."

The latin woman looked at the sign in disbelief. "OH, ESOS PENDEJOS!"

"We'll have to wait for someone else to open the door," Lucy cursed softly. "Anyway, what are you doing here? Are you on a mission?"

"No, I left the DEO two weeks after you left. They wanted to move the base to the center of the city, and I refuse to work in the center of the city."

"What? Why?"

"Magnetic fields, Lucy! They put the new DEO in a magnetic field that's very bad for the skin! Do you want me to become ugly? No way! I'm much better now, I'm a lion tamer in Africa."

"But... there are only wild lions in Africa ..."

"…Yeah, and?"

"Why would anyone want-? It doesn't matter."

The door opened and with surprise, they both saw a frustrated Cat Grant on the phone.

"What?! Lena Luthor is what?! I heard you the first time, Olsen! I want everyone researching this now!"

"Don't close the...!" ***BAM*** "...door"

"No, Olsen," she said. "I don't care! Put Kiera on the phone. She's not there? Well, what are you waiting for? An e-mail? Go get her, and call me right away!" Cat cut off her phone call, noticing Lucy and Vasquez for the first time. "Baby Lane?"

"This can't be true." Lucy leaned her back against the wall. "What could be worse?"

At that moment, the heavens opened, the angels sang, and a heavenly light flooded the bathroom. The three women watched in disbelief as Astra descended from the heights, with a halo on her head and two tiny wings on her back.

"Believe me, I like this as little as you. But Rao won't let me into heaven until I do good deeds."

Astra walked to the bathroom door and broke it with a kick.

"Now go away, you idiots."

And Astra returned to the heights.

Cat, Lucy, and Susan watched the ceiling for a while longer, before shrugging and getting out of the bathroom.


	8. Oasis

**And with this, the fic has already gone to "mature", xD**  
 **You will never know how much it cost me to write this chapter. Really.**

* * *

Chapter Text

It's night, but Lena can perfectly see the silhouette of mommy sitting in the rocking chair, illuminated by the moonlight. She was asleep, being hugged by mom, until she felt mommy coming out of bed. She was staring out the window with sad, opaque eyes.

Lena broke free of mom's embrace, advancing toward the edge of the bed. In an act of courage (everyone always told her that she had to be brave), Lena got out of bed by herself. She felt great pride when she didn't fall. She was getting better at this walking thing.

Lena searched for her favorite toy on the floor. She found it next to mom's favorite sword, the one with the "A" engraved on the hilt. With the little yellow moon in her hand, Lena walked silently up to where mommy was.

Lena tugged on her tunic to get her attention. Mommy's eyes looked at her in surprise.

"No sad, mommy, mun mun." She offered her the toy.

Mommy smiled a little, Lena could see the light of the night reflected in her eyes. Mommy lifted her off the floor and sat her on her lap, rocking slowly.

"You should be sleeping," she whispered.

"Mommy sad." Lena offered the toy again. Mommy looked at her for a long time, before taking it. "Wy sad?"

"It's nothing, my sun and stars; adult stuff."

Lena looked at her for a long time. Mommy stroked her face. "Do you remember that I promised that I would bring Lilly and Lutessa for your birthday? So that you have someone to play with?... They will not come, honey. I'm so sorry." Mommy hugged her. "I'm afraid it cannot be, sweetheart." Mommy began stroking her hair. "Oh, Lena. The truth is painful, but it's the truth. Some people are just bad, and there's nothing we can do about it. Just learn how to protect ourselves."

* * *

 **Lena (Luthor?)**

 **16:32 PM**

Lena, still with her eyes closed, counted the hours that had been needed to make her life a mess. Ever since I saw my biological mother on television, and then I saw my... other biological mother throwing three men into the air... To conclude, finding my adoptive mother being taken to the emergency room at Stryker's Island hospital. Almost four hours. Two Lord of the Rings films.

Lena wasn't sure whether she was awake or not, but she was sure she wasn't in her bed, or in her bedroom, or in her apartment... or in her city. She came to the conclusion that she was awake, thanks to the pain in her jaw.

She felt disgusting.

The ceiling of the hotel room was a pastel color. Lena tried to move her hands, two broken fingers. Then she tried to move her feet, blisters. The bed felt sticky; it had absorbed the dirt of its occupants. Lena made a superhuman effort to sit up.

She had a vague memory of losing her composure when they arrived at the prison, only to find that her mother (lies) was being rushed to the hospital after she had poisoned herself. Then she had a faint memory of shaking in strong arms. She was about to panic, until Kara arrived.

Lies. Lena hugged herself. You made me believe all my life that my parents had abandoned me. And every little moment I've lived for thirty years has been a lie. I wish I had let Diana kill you.

Lena threw her head back and sighed. The wound on her lip burned when it met a tear. She stood still, breathing in silence. Then she reached out and grabbed her cell phone from the bedside table.

 ***Puun* *Puun* *-Clinck-***

"Miss Luthor?"

"Good afternoon, Jess," Lena said.

"Miss Luthor! Are you okay!? Where are you!? All the news is saying..."

"Jess..." Lena interrupted. "Listen carefully, and ignore the news for now. I won't be available for a couple of days. I'm out of town... What's going on there?"

"They've tried to talk to me," Jess confessed softly. "I didn't tell them anything, I swear. Anyway, I don't know anything. They surprised me on the street and tried to ask me questions. Also to some other employees."

"Make sure everyone knows that demons will rain on whoever talks to the press."

"Miss Luthor... Is that true?" Lena didn't answer. "I'm so sorry, it's none of my business. Please, forget I said that."

"Do you know what happened to my apartment?"

"Almost everything is destroyed, like almost the whole building. Early this morning I made sure that a team looked through the rubble. They saved a couple of trunks, and maybe the laptop of Miss Danvers. Everything else, burned."

"My files and documents?"

"Burned. But the most important ones have copies in your office."

"Has the board said anything?"

"... Yes." Jess's voice faltered a little. "The administrative board has convened a meeting in..."

"There will be no meetings until I say it," Lena said in an icy voice. "Get in touch with Mr. Masrani. Give him a copy of the documents about Japan, and tell him to take over. Help him in everything he needs. Tomorrow at 8:00 PM is the meeting with Yagami-sama. I can't be there, Masrani will have to take over."

"They have called from the Caribbean. Mrs Dearing-Young has received the Scottish emissary. She says that everything has gone well, but that... "

Lena saw a note by her pillow. It was Kara's handwriting.

"... the emissary of Scotland..."

"Understood, Jess. I have to hang up. Have a good day."

"It's almost fi..." ***Plank***

While the conversation lasted, Lena had felt a little more like herself. Being alone again in the bedroom, alone with her thoughts, she couldn't help but return to the thick nebula from which she seemed unable to leave. She remembered that Kara had slept with her the night before, not taking off her Supergirl suit. Kara's absence hurt almost physically. Kara, where are you?

Lena opened the note.

"L:

I'm sorry! I'm so sorry for not being there right now (if you're already awake, of course). I'll be back as soon as I can! I'm on the roof receiving sunlight. There are no sunbeds here, and I woke up feeling very weak. At the moment it's 3:40 PM. I'll be back as fast as I can! I love you. Please call me on if you wake up.

K.

P.S: We are registered at the Hotel Grounder, room one hundred, as Zora and Helena Griffin. The paparazzi will not look for us in Metropolis, but I wanted to be sure.

K."

Lena was definitely awake, but instead of calling Kara, she called the hotel reception.

"Reception, this is Helena Griffin, from room one hundred. I want to order room service."

* * *

 **A woman on edge**

 **05:03 PM**

Lena left the food untouched on the table in the small kitchen. Her attention fell only on the two bottles of wine that the waiter brought with the tray.

To make up for the appalling look she knew she had, Lena gave the waiter a very good tip. Once alone again, the brunette rushed to open the first bottle, feeling a shiver of pleasure when she smelled the drink.

She remembered the first time she had drunk alcohol, when she was twelve, and Lionel was berating her because she had stumbled and fell in front of an important visitor. "All you had to do was say 'Good evening,' just that. Can't you even say 'Good evening'? What the hell is wrong with this girl, Lillian?" And then he went to his office, furious, leaving his glass of bourbon unfinished. That night, she was going to Lex's bedroom to ask if she could sleep with him, but as she passed the dining room, the glass of bourbon was still on the table. Lena remembered that she had tasted it out of curiosity. And its taste was horrible.

She didn't think about drinking again until she entered boarding school. God, the boarding school. Seven years of education in Ireland, crazy party nights, fast sex in closets, and drinking—lots of drinking. She didn't like the taste of alcohol at the time, either, but all the cool girls had to drink at a party, so the taste no longer mattered at all. Until Lena got accustomed to the warmth in her throat after a whiskey.

Even then, she knew she didn't like to drink, but when drinking she could forget. Forget that she hated Lionel for just reproaching her and never hugging her. Forgetting that her mother (she's not my mother, never again, never) only had time for her lab and her travels, and never for her. Forget that Lex, her brother, her only friend, was in another country and that Lena missed him so much it hurt.

But most of all, Lena had spent those years drinking secretly to forget that her biological parents had thrown her away like garbage.

And it had been a great ( **LIEEEE!** ).

She began to pour wine into a glass.

All lies. All. Even the last moment of my life is a lie. Fuck everything.

And by God, she wanted so much to drink the whole bottle, and then the next, and then ask for more. It hurt her physically how much she wanted to drink. She had not felt this way since she spent her first twenty-four hours without drinking, almost a year after she moved to National City. Kara had been so...

 **Kara**

Lena let go of the glass before lifting it to her lips.

"Lena, this isn't good! You've had enough! Why do you do this? Why do you hurt yourself? You have to stop, do you understand? I can help. Lena, I really like you, and I think I'm falling in love with you. That's why I have to stop you. We can fix this, I swear we can fix it, but you have to help me to help you. You're wonderful, Lena. You don't deserve to destroy your life like this. Please help me help you."

Not everything in my life is a lie. **Kara is real.**

Kara, her beautiful smiles, her bright eyes, her nervous tics, her serious expression, her indignant voice. **Kara Kara Kara Kara Kara**. Who had given her a family (Eliza teaching her to cook, Alex and her making fun of Mexican TV soaps). Who had given her an invaluable friend (Winn staying for dinner, showing her adventure movies, talking about science with her, understanding what it was like to be judged by your family). Kara, who had crashed into her life to save her from the path of self-destruction she was always sure would follow. Sometimes Lena felt she loved her so much she could die without her. Her heart was totally naked before Kara Zor-El Danvers. She was totally at the mercy of Kara, able to do anything for Kara. If Kara asked her to jump off a cliff, Lena would jump, sure Kara would catch her. And she had never been scared to be at Kara's mercy. Lena accepted her situation, blissful that the powerful blonde was hers too.

If God existed, he would live in Kara's eyes.

Lena threw the wine down the sink.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **05:23 PM**

I still feel weak. Rao, what am I supposed to do if anyone needs Supergirl?

Alex had assured her that everything would be alright, that tomorrow they could return home, after the DEO finished searching Lillian's cell for possible clues. Kara was more worried about Diana, honestly. It was as if Rao was playing with all of us.

Diana's leg was being checked at the same hospital where Lillian Luthor was.

Please, let her not find out, let her not find out.

When she entered the hotel room, Kara heard the sound of the water sliding down Lena's skin. Her girlfriend was in the bathroom, rubbing herself with soap in an almost rabid way. Kara spent a few seconds listening to Lena's breathing mixed with the noise of the water. It was an almost relaxing sound.

Kara let out a tense sigh, arranging the collar of her newly purchased shirt. She walked to the bathroom door, pausing for a few seconds to try and figure out what the heck she was going to say. Realizing that the words wouldn't reach her, Kara knocked on the door anyway.

"Lena?" Kara could see her girlfriend stop lathering with her vision. "Have you been awake for a long time? Did you read my note?"

"Come here, Kara."

The Kryptonian entered the bathroom. Lena was sitting in the tub, her skin flushed from rubbing. The dirty water was going down the drain, evidencing the intense hours they had been through. Kara tried to focus her eyes on her girlfriend's greens, not her absurdly perfect breasts.

Kara sat down next to the tub, rubbing Lena's wet cheek with her thumb. "Have you been up for long?"

"A few minutes." Lena leaned her face into the caress. "Are you alright? Are your powers okay? Have you eaten?"

"A lot." The thumb on her cheek moved to her chin. "Since I woke up I haven't stopped eating. I'm not quite recovered yet, but my powers are slowly coming back. Alex told me to take it easy."

"Alex was here?"

"She and Maggie are staying one floor below." Kara shrugged. "But they aren't there now. Alex is on Stryker's Island asking questions, and Maggie is in the hospital... asking Diana questions." Kara withdrew her hand. "I'm sorry, Lena. I had to stop her and... I hurt her. "

"You hurt her?"

"I u-used my heat vision on her leg." Kara choked on her words. "I'm sorry, I-I did not want to, but she was beside herself and..."

"Will she be alright?"

"Yes."

"Then I'm sure she'll forgive you eventually."

Kara moved even closer, putting both hands on the woman's wet cheeks. "Lena, how do you feel?"

Kara didn't know how to ask it (without sounding stupid). Alex had summarized everything that had happened while she was chasing Diana. Kara was worried beyond words.

Lena smiled sadly and shook her head. "I feel... confused." She bit her already injured lip. "Scared." A sigh escaped her throat. "Furious." She looked directly into Kara's eyes. "Sad." Kara felt her girlfriend's hand on her cheek. "But I'll be fine." Lena hid her face in Kara's neck. Her hair was a mess. "If you're with me, nothing can destroy me, Kara."

They were silent for a while, until Lena lifted her head and kissed Kara long on the lips. Kara wrapped her arms around her, wetting her new shirt. Lena finished the kiss with a moan.

"Will you join me?" Lena rubbed their noses.

Kara stood up and started unbuttoning her shirt, as the brunette lowered her pants and underwear. A violent shiver ran down her back as she felt Lena's breath there. She couldn't suppress her moan of need when her girlfriend kissed her clit.

The Kryptonian let the older woman begin to caress her sensitive spot with the tip of her tongue, losing all the air in her lungs as Lena's wet hands gripped her buttocks tightly. This is not the most comfortable position for- AH. The brunette's tongue began to come in and out.

"I-I'll not hold out for long."

That only caused Lena to increase speed. Kara was struggling to keep her balance, desperately searching for something to hold on to. Her vision began to darken, her fists clenched, her body burned, and when she finally lowered her gaze to enjoy the view, her body exploded. RAO.

Lena wiped her chin with the back of her hand, bringing Kara's essence to her mouth. The blonde thought she was going to melt when Lena's tongue returned to her femininity, to drink the rest of the nectar from her body.

"Did I ever tell you that your taste is too strong?" Lena kissed her pelvis. "Like steel."

Kara smiled and went into the tub, leaning over the object of her desire. Her kiss was messy, needy. Kara needed to hear the older woman moan, needed to see her writhing in pleasure, begging for her fingers, her tongue, her kisses. I need to make you feel good.

Kara opened Lena's legs, caressing her inner thighs. Lena tangled her legs around the wet waist of the kryptonian.

"Now I'm going to make you feel great." Kara's hand began to make their way down Lena's leg. Her beautiful face lit up. "And later, I'm going to wash your hair."

* * *

 **An alien in love.**

 **6:10 PM**

They were wrapped in blue bathrobes, lying on the couch, because the bed had gotten dirty from the condition they had slept in the night before. Kara was taking bits of a plate of rosbief she had found in the kitchen, next to an old radio. Lena must have been hungry when she woke up. The activities in the bathtub had made her hungry again. I hope no one notices the fingerprints on the tap... At least my powers are coming back.

The old radio was broadcasting a unknown song. Lena, in her post-coital tranquility, lay in Kara's arms, her hair wet and her eyes closed. The Kryptonian had a black tuft between her fingers, stroking it with her thumb.

Stopping listening to the music, Lena spoke to her. "I talked to Jess. I told her I would not go to work tomorrow, and gave her instructions on what to do about the Japanese. Oh, I also asked if they could rescue anything from the fire." Lena opened her eyes. "Your old trunks were saved, and maybe your laptop too. Did you have very important things there?"

"Umm?... W-work stuff. You know, normal work stuff of journalists."

"Let's hope you don't have any problems at work for that, Kara."

"I won't. Easy. But I really hope my laptop can be fixed." The song on the radio changed, and Kara looked at Lena. "Why didn't you tell me you were having memories of your childhood?"

Lena blushed. "I didn't know they were from my childhood, I didn't even know they were memories. I thought they were just strange dreams." Lena leaned her head on Kara's shoulder. "They felt like normal dreams. Sometimes, when I woke up, I couldn't remember them well. It wasn't until I saw Diana in the ambulance that... all the dreams came back to me." She smiled sadly. "And I realized that everything I thought I knew was just a lie."

Kara turned around so she could see her completely. A song in another language began to play on the radio.

"You know what, Kara? All my life, I have asked myself about my biological mother many times. I always imagined that she would be some irresponsible adolescent who got pregnant by accident. I don't know, the kind of person who abandons a child as if it was nothing more than garbage." Lena drew circles on Kara's arm. "This truth that I have discovered... Everything I thought I knew has changed. I've been an orphan all my life, I'm not sure I can stop being like this."

"They aren't like Lillian." Kara lifted her chin, to look at her. "You've seen what they can do for you. They love you. The only reason Diana didn't kill Lillian was because she didn't want to lose you. Lena, you're confused, and that's fine; it's all happened so suddenly. But this is a good thing." Kara stroked her cheek. "They didn't abandon you: they lost you, they thought you were dead. You're madly loved by the people who brought you into the world."

Lena bit her lip, her eyes glittering with tears. "Lillian ruined our lives, and now maybe she'll never say why." Her mouth turned into a thin line. "I have to know why she did it. I have to find out the truth." Lena looked at her pleadingly. "You will be with me? Whatever happens?"

Kara smiled and gave her a short kiss. "Always."

The radio started broadcasting a song that Kara had heard before, although she didn't know its name. With an idea in her mind, Kara rose from the sofa and turned up the volume of the radio.

Today is gonna be the day

That they're gonna throw it back to you

Singing along softly, Kara returned to the living room. Lena watched in wonder as her girlfriend spread both hands in front of her, a smile on her lips that would make the sun look ridiculous.

"Can I have this dance?"

"Kara, I'm not in the mood."

"Come on, Lena!" Kara took her hands. "Our home burned down, we're all hurt, the paparazzi are chasing us, we're hiding from half the country's media... None of that is an obstacle if we're together."

I don't believe that anybody

Feels the way I do, about you now

Lena smiled genuinely for the first time in a thousand years, rising from the couch and wrapping her arms around Kara's neck. Kara hugged her waist and began to dance slowly, turning around the room gently, with the brunette in her arms. She buried her head in her shoulder and kissed her neck.

Because maybe,

you're gonna be the one that saves me

Kara felt Lena's arms hug her tightly, whispering the song's lyrics in a low voice. She admired Lena so much. She was a strong and beautiful woman, both inside and out. And she wouldn't let anything or anyone hurt her anymore. Lena was the other half of her heart, and if someone hurt her, they would hurt Kara. You're that special being that Rao has created just for me.

And after all,

you're my wonderwall

Kara joined her forehead with her girlfriend's.

Because maybe,

you're gonna be the one that saves me

And after all,

you're my wonderwall

She was taking Lena's bathrobe off when someone knocked on her door.

The spell broke, and both stood in the middle of the room. Lena went to the kitchen to turn off the radio. Kara took off her glasses and used her vision to look behind the door. A tall woman with red-orange hair stood there, her hands in the pockets of her jeans. She would have passed for a woman more or less normal but for the huge bow on her back.

"Oh Rao." Kara put on her glasses again.

"Puppy?"

"It's Artemis."

Lena's eyes widened with surprise and nervousness, tightening her lips and looking away. Kara went to open the door, meeting the redhead, who raised her eyebrow slightly when she saw her.

"You're one of the journalists who was at CatCo."

"Umm... Hi, I'm Kara Dan-"

"I hope you're not here trying to get an interview." Artemis smiled, Kara realized at that moment that the woman didn't usually make jokes. "Really, that would be... unfortunate."

Out of the corner of her eye, Kara saw Lena approach. The tension in Artemis's body changed suddenly, to something less dangerous and more... quiet, would be the word, but Kara wasn't sure. The look she gave Lena seemed to contain millions of silent words.

"Lena." Her hand shook a little, but only for a moment.

"Hello." Lena tried to smile, but she was so nervous that she only managed to crack her lips. "Kara has my absolute confidence. She's my girlfriend."

"... Are you dating a... journalist?"

"… Yes... Why?"

"Oh, no, nothing." Artemis's pupils became tiny and she ran a hand through (or rather: tugged at) her hair. "I love journalists."

There was an awkward silence, in which Lena bit her lip and Artemis looked at her, her eyes bright.

"I think we have a lot of things to talk about." Started the redhead.

Lena nodded. "We certainly have."

Artemis entered the room, closing the door softly. Kara watched as she and Lena sat down on the couch, leaving a modest space between them. Artemis left her huge bow on the tea table. Lena was looking at her with slightly trembling hands. Kara watched her girlfriend calm down and try to get into her bussiness-woman state.

"Can I offer you something?" she asked. "Maybe water?"

"I don't need anything... Thanks."

"Lena, I think I'll give you space to..."

"What?" Lena interrupted, a little anger in her green eyes. "Don't even think about it; you stay here."

"Are you sure you don't want some space?"

"You stay here, puppy."

"Puppy?" Artemis asked, and Lena blushed red. "Well, at least it's better than 'Missy'."

Kara sat down next to Lena and took her hand, rubbing her thumb. Her girlfriend was a little less nervous.

Artemis didn't speak immediately, just watching Lena as if she feared she would disappear if she closed her eyes. Tentatively, almost frightened, she raised a hand and touched a pair of black locks. Her eyes were glazed, but she never lost her composure. Lena tensed as she felt that hand in her hair, squeezing Kara's hand tightly.

"I'm sure you'll have plenty of questions," Artemis began. "I don't have all the answers, but I can tell you what I know. And before you start, I have to make sure you know one thing." Artemis swallowed. "Diana and I loved you so much that losing you almost destroyed us."

Lena came out of her bussiness-woman state, squeezing Kara's hand so tightly that, if she hadn't been kryptonian, she would have hurt her.

"The second..." continued the redhead, clasping her hands together. "It all started in 1987, when Diana was tracking down illegal organ traffickers."

* * *

 **Notes:**

 **Umm, I've noticed that there are fewer and fewer comments. I am doing something wrong? Honestly, your coments help me a lot to inspire me, so with a "I read it, I liked it" I conform. Thanks for your support!**  
 **I'm terrible at making author notes, I know.**  
 **Song: Wonderwall**


	9. The ghost among us

**My intention was to update yesterday, but it was my birthday and I was partying :)**  
 **Did I mention that I love Sanvers? Hopefully they'll be endgame... Literally, Sanvers is the best of this season (followed closely by Lena Luthor and her smile) (Rao/Hera/Heck, Supergirl made me even more gay)**

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **12:13 PM**

On waking, Maggie sat on the edge of the bed. The fatigue in her shoulders throbbed with fury. Rubbing her neck, her gaze fell on Alex.

Of all the women I've been with, none of them have ever slept as if they were ready to hit someone at any moment.

From the beginning, she had found Alex's way of sleeping curious, like a cat ready to jump. Maggie had been with a generous amount of girls, but none of them had ever slept as light as Alex. The slightest noise awakened her girlfriend, or in this case, the slightest touch.

Alex woke with a start when Maggie kissed her wounded foot. Immediately, Maggie dodged a kick. Almost. You should think better about what you do, Sawyer. Your purple eye is beginning to disappear, you won't want another. Alex, almost fully awake, blushed and looked at her girlfriend.

"Sorry, Maggie, I-"

"It's okay, my reflexes saved me again." She stroked Alex's leg. "What happened to your foot?"

"I lost a shoe while I was running away with Lena yesterday." Alex sat down on the bed, in front of her. "It really doesn't hurt; don't worry about me. I'll wrap it in a bandage and I'll be able to walk normally."

Alex grabbed her cell phone, probably to check if there were no messages from Kara. Maggie stared at her face for a few seconds, enjoying every inch of it. Her eyes lingered on the wound on Alex's temple for a while, almost hidden by her hair. She's so strong.

"Maggie?" Alex noticed her gaze, and immediately diverted her attention from the cell phone. "I know that look."

The detective didn't respond immediately, staring at her thumbs. "I'm just thinking."

"Thinking about...?"

"What the hell is going on here." Maggie rose from the bed. "Why would Luthor want to kidnap Lena? And where is the other girl? "

"Other girl?"

"That Lutessa." Maggie put on her jacket. "Lena has no other sibling but Lex. What about her? Does it have anything to do with Lena?"

Before Alex could respond, her phone vibrated. Maggie fumbled around the room for her boots, finding them behind the curtains.

"It's J'onn." Alex stood up, slowly supporting her wounded foot on the floor. "He's on Stryker's Island. The message says that I should take some time to rest, and that he'll contact me soon." Alex got up, fully awake. "I have to go now. Where's my jacket?"

"You gave it to Lena, remember?"

"Fuck."

Maggie moved quickly to Alex, kissed her deeply on the lips, and then kissed her forehead. "I'll go and see Diana at the Hospital. I'll see you later."

* * *

 **Hank Henshaw**

 **3:46 PM**

Stryker's Island Penitentiary was Metropolis' largest and most secure prison, an imposing titan located in the West River, which streamed south of downtown Metropolis. The gigantic prison housed men in the west, and women in the east. Only four people have managed to escape from Stryker's, in all its history.

In J'onn's defense, he had not really expected Alex to rest as had commanded her to do. But he'd had to try anyway.

So when Alex showed up on Stryker's Island, limping slightly with her left leg, and with her expression of 'I'm Badass Danvers and you better not think I'll be resting', the Martian shook his head, sighed, and sent her to interrogate the prisoners in the Luthor's sector. He knew that probably nobody knew anything, but he had to be sure. And Alex was almost a living lie detector.

A couple of agents were with him, checking Luthor's cell from top to bottom. The few objects found in the cell had been kept as evidence: a comb, some pencils, a biography of Steve Jobs, a toothbrush, and some newspaper clippings ('Lex Luthor conquers the market with his new invention', 'Luthor and Superman: how far will their war come?', 'Luthor's earthquake leaves a total of two thousand dead', 'From LuthorCorp to L-Corp, will there be any difference?') and clippings highlighting a few other random events, such as some murders in Scotland or President Marsdin's last birthday.

"Still no sign of the hiding place?" J'onn asked Winn, bringing his index finger to his ear.

"The radio signals I'm receiving have detected it. It's behind some of the bricks of the wall in front of Agent Grady." He heard the sound of Winn's fingers typing. "Ask Grady to move forward."

J'onn did, and Agent Grady moved forward, moving the radio transmitter from top to bottom.

"There!"

"Stay still, Grady."

J'onn approached the marked brick, tapping it gently with his index finger. The brick was hollow. The Martian removed it from the wall carefully, in case it was a trap. (I wouldn't be surprised if that woman had hidden a bomb).

It turned out there was a small container of serum, probably of the same unknown kind that had been found in Luthor's syringe. There was something else beside the small transparent container. J'onn took the small, curious-looking object and examined it between his index finger and thumb.

"Is that a blue nut?" Grady asked.

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **3:47 PM**

Alex Danvers was sitting in an improvised interrogation room, dismissing the last convict who knew nothing. Despite feeling a generous pain in certain parts of her body, including her poor foot, the soldier's face betrayed no weakness.

The other agents excused themselves and left the room, to inform J'onn about the useless interrogations. Alex let out a frustrated sigh and laid out Luthor's personal belongings on the table. She moved the toothbrush and pencils aside, concentrating on the newspaper clippings and the Steve Jobs biography.

Her cell phone vibrated, but stopped a second later. Alex took it—distracted for a second with the image of Maggie smiling—and checked the missed call. It was Kara's.

The phone vibrated again, and she answered.

"Kara?"

"Oh, Alex," her sister whispered. "Alex, my powers are very weak. I just w-woke up and... "

"Kara, easy, eas..."

"We don't have a sunbed here!"

"Then we'll have to improvise," Alex said softly. "Go to the roof to take all the sun you can. That should help you a bit for now. We'll be home soon. And if this takes longer than expected, I'll get you a sunbed, I promise."

"Where are you?"

"Stryker's Island." The older Danvers rubbed her eyes. "And Maggie went to the hospital to see Diana. But we haven't yet discovered anything interesting. Why did you cut off the call a few moments ago?"

"My stomach gave a violent twinge. I need to eat. A lot."

"How's Lena?"

"Lena is still sleeping," Kara whispered. "Argg! I don't want to leave her alone, but I really need to eat and go to the roof. Or eat on the roof. Maybe if I wake her..."

"Let her sleep," Alex said. "She needs it now. Remember everything I told you that happened?"

"I can't stop thinking about that." Her sister sighed. "What hospital is Diana in? Maybe Lena wants to go talk to her when she wakes up."

"Princeton Plainsboro."

"But isn't...?"

"Lillian Luthor, yes."

"Rao's Sh-" ***Pank*** "You have to do something about that, please. I'll go sunbathe and eat. Sunbathe while I eat. Please keep me informed."

"Easy, Kara. Take care of Lena."

The call was over and Alex returned to her work. The most curious items were undoubtedly the newspaper clippings, although on the other hand it was quite normal. She didn't forget that, as twisted and evil as Lillian Luthor was, she was still a mother. And any mother, however wicked, worries even a little about her children. But none of this makes sense. What are you hiding, bitch?

Then she took the big volume that was Steve Jobs' biography. Maybe she left some note in the margins. Alex started to turn page after page, looking for a useful annotation to advance the investigation. Honestly, there has to be som- And this?

When she reached the middle of the book, Alex couldn't help but open her mouth halfway as she raised her eyebrows. The rest of the pages had been cut out to create a hollow, where another book, small and blue, was hidden. It looked very old and smelled slightly of hot glue. A symbol similar to a golden atom was clearly visible. The title on the cover was written in Greek letters (I should have taken that Greek class in college), but was almost illegible due to the passage of time.

What is this?

Alex picked up her phone and took a picture.

* * *

 **Diana of Themyscira**

 **3:30 PM**

Every time Diana closed her eyes, she opened them seconds later, with a killer pain inside her heart. The pain in her leg felt like sweet tickling ("tilin war, mommy, tilin war!") compared to her heartache. ("I named him Alexander. Isn't that a perfect name for him? By your island, Diana, that my son will be a genius who will change the world for the better.) She was awake the whole time: since J'onn and his men found her in the field, still as a statue, until the doctors finished bandaging her leg and Diana was left alone with her misery.

Only once had she felt this way before, as if her internal organs wanted to escape her body and disintegrate on the floor. But this time it was different. When they had found what was left of Lena's body, (No, that body wasn't Lena's; Lena's alive, Lena's alive, Lena's alive, Lena's alive, Lena's alive, Lena's alive, Lena's alive, Lena's alive. She's been alive all this time) Diana... went off. There was no violent reaction like the one she'd had yesterday. She had died inside the second she saw the corpse. She really would have died had it not been for Artemis. And yet, I failed her that time. She was also suffering, and instead of trying to bear the pain together, I locked myself in my own pain and barely got out of bed for eleven months. If she had not forced me out of bed...

The pain of losing a child freezes you inside. The pain of discovering that it was all the fault of a betrayal, makes you explode.

She still didn't understand when everything went to hell with **Mrs Luthor**. Diana couldn't have been so blind from the start. Or maybe yes, and what I thought was a desire to improve the world was only a desire to rule it.

The door opened and Diana watched her wife enter.

Artemis' face looked like it was carved from stone, her eyes harder than granite. It had been a long time since Diana had seen that expression on her face, that anger barely contained, mixed with the desire to shed blood. The redhead had a bow on her back, which she had to leave by the bed when she sat next to Diana.

"Your leg?"

"It'll heal quickly." Her voice was hoarse. "Maybe just a couple of days. The doctors told me that my powers would speed up the process, but only if I remain calm."

"Well, good luck with that." Artemis looked her straight in the eye. "It seems incredible to me that the first thing you did when you knew our daughter was alive was to fly away from her."

Diana's head began to ache. Her vision darkened a little.

"Lillian..."

"Diana, if you say 'Lillian' again, I'll lose the little control I have over myself and start yelling at you—and believe me, we don't need that now." Artemis pursed her lips. "The priority now is that Lena is alive. The traitor's life will have to pass into the background."

"Background?" Diana did her best to keep her voice quiet. "Lena has grown up without us, calling her "mother", being raised as a Luthor, and you're telling me we should forget about that?"

The redhead's pupils grew smaller as she smiled sharply. "I don't think I expressed myself properly." She leaned a little closer to the bed. "Pay attention to what I'm going to tell you, Diana. During the last few years, at night, every time your mother snored too loudly, I fantasized about Lena. With Lena alive, happy, growing up in Themyscira, feeling curious about the world, playing with Alexa, with us. As it should have been. But you know what? It wasn't like that, and it never will be, because Lena is an adult. We have already lost thirty years, and if we lose a second more I think I would be able to..." Artemis stopped, and clenched her fists with great force. She opened her eyes again. "It's not your fault. But our priority now must be to recover Lena. Revenge can wait."

Diana swallowed and ignored the stinging in her eyes.

"I went crazy." Diana watched her hands. "If it had not been for Supergirl, I would have killed her, Artemis. I'm not even sure if I would have interrogated her first."

The redhead's face softened a little.

"When Lena saw her, she almost fainted," said Artemis disgustedly. "That traitor not only took Lena away, she... taught her to love her. And as long as Lena loves her, we can't kill her." She dug her nails into her pants. "I want to kill Luthor, Diana. I want to cut her into pieces and feed the dogs with her. And then kill the dogs and burn them. I want to go down to hell and resurrect her later, only to be able to kill her again. I want to erase her name from the face of the earth." The redhead sighed. "But as long as Lena wants Luthor to breathe, Luthor'll breathe. Maybe we can make Lena change her mind over time, and we can condemn her to death. But nothing can stand in the way of getting Lena back now, not even ourselves."

Diana took a deep breath and looked at the white sheets. "I just want to get my baby back, Artemis. If Lena asks me not to kill her, I won't kill her."

"If Lena asks me not to kill her..." Artemis bit her lip. "I'll have to settle for cutting off her hands and legs."

"Was Lena afraid?"

"Lena held her ground until we reached the prison. I can't imagine..." Artemis bit her lip. "She must be very confused now. Maybe I should go and talk to her; explain that we thought she was dead. Tell her what happened that day and the day you cut off relations with Luthor."

"Do it." Diana took her hand. "Go talk to her now, please. She shouldn't believe we abandoned her. Please make her understand that we love her."

"I will." Artemis got up and picked up her bow. "I'll be back tonight or tomorrow in the morning." She caressed Diana's black curls and kissed her deeply on the lips. "I love you, Princess."

"I love you too."

Artemis left, and Diana moved her injured leg. She felt better after having that conversation with her wife. When did she become more lucid than I? Maybe it's because she's young yet. She is fifty-six years old; the passage of time has not yet marked her heart. I wish it never will.

The door opened softly again.

"Missy, what-? Oh. "

Instead of meeting her wife, Diana saw Detective Maggie Sawyer smile slightly. She wasn't surprised. Of course sooner or later someone would ask questions. But she had not expected it to be Detective Sawyer. Doesn't she only investigate aliens?

"Hello, Diana." Maggie smiled politely. "How is your leg?"

"My leg will heal soon, Detective Sawyer. I've had worse wounds," Diana said, trying to smile. Incredibly, she did it. "What brings you here? Can I help you with something?"

"Actually, I came to help you." She sat down next to Diana.

"Really?"

"Yes, and before you tell me you have no interest in talking to anyone, please, listen to what I have to tell you."

Diana felt curious and nodded.

Detective Sawyer pulled a cell phone out of her pocket. With incredible skill, surely the product of many hours of training, Sawyer made an image appear on the screen. It was a photograph of five women: she, the woman who had stabbed the tamaranean, two blondes, and...

 **Lena**

Lena was smiling, hugging one of the blondes (I've seen her before. Wasn't she at the press conference?). There was a pair of dimples in her cheeks, just like so many years ago. Her smile hasn't changed. A feeling of warmth ran through her body. All the pain, all the anger of the past hours withdrew from her chest, leaving only a bittersweet melancholy. Diana stroked the screen.

"The last time we talked, you asked me if Lena Luthor was an honorable woman. We didn't finish that conversation." Maggie smiled. "I don't know what Amazons mean by 'honorable,' but Lena is a good woman. Sometimes she acts a bit weird, and I almost always don't understand what the hell she's talking about, but she's a good woman."

"You're her friend."

"Well, not exactly 'her friend'. We aren't very close, but we get along. Our girlfriends are sisters, we took this picture on Kara's last birthday. Kara is her girlfriend."

"Lena has a... girlfriend?"

"The blonde next to her."

Diana looked at the blonde. "She looks like a good girl, and she's pretty, but poor Supergirl."

"Supergirl?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. Don't tell anyone Supergirl has romantic feelings for my daughter. This girl must be amazing if Lena has chosen her over a brave warrior like Supergirl."

"You have no idea." Maggie laughed. "Do you want to see other photos?"

So Diana spent the next twenty minutes looking at pictures of her found princess. On some occasions, Lena had been standing behind a lectern, impeccably dressed. In others she had her face stained with flour, cooking with her girlfriend and the other blonde woman. On the last ones, she was hugging a young man with black hair and a nice smile.

"That's her best friend, Winn. Together, they're the two biggest nerds in the city. Once, they argued about Adventure Time for an hour." Maggie's mouth curled. "It's not a joke."

Despite not knowing what 'nerd' and 'Adventure Time' meant, Diana smiled.

"There's no more pictures?" Diana tried to move the image, as she had seen Maggie do. She didn't get it.

"No, there aren't. I'll bring you more tomorrow, I promise." Maggie looked at her thumbs. "Lena and I aren't close. But we're part of the same family. And I'm not the kind of person who stands by while her family has problems." They shared a look of understanding. "I'm a detective, Princess Diana. My job is to help people and solve mysteries. I want to help Lena, and I want to help you. You can use your lasso on-"

"It's not necessary." Diana sighed. "I'm going to trust you, Detective Sawyer."

Maggie sighed with relief.

"What do you need to know?"

"I suppose we have to start at the beginning. Can you think of any reason Luthor would want to kidnap Lena?"

"Just to hurt me." Diana shrugged. "Our friendship didn't end well."

"Why did you end your friendship?"

"...It was 1987." Diana sighed. "Lena was a year old then and lived in Themyscira with Artemis and the rest of the Amazons. Sometimes, I would secretly bring her to the embassy, to play with Lutessa. She was the only little girl on the island, as I once was. I wanted her to have a friend of her age to play with...

Lillian was working at LuthorCorp's lab at the time. The department head, her father-in-law Lachlan, retired and she had to take over. I still remember she was a bit nervous the day she became the boss. I told her "I have no doubt that you will do well." She feared that the job would take time away from being with her children. But it was her dream, so she took it anyway.

It was then that she began to avoid me."

"Avoid you?"

"Yes." Diana looked away. "I didn't immediately notice. But every time I wanted to meet with her, she was busy. She also didn't have time to bring Lutessa to play with Lena. I thought it was because of work, but she started to act... weird. She was always a quiet, calculating woman. She could command respect with only the sound of her voice. But she was never a cold person." Diana sighed. "And in those months Lillian became a woman I no longer recognized. As if her heart had frozen."

Diana needed some time to look for the words.

"Barbara Minerva, maybe you know her as Cheetah, was was a thief that I chased for a long time. But overnight, Cheetah stopped robbing banks and started stealing... organs.

Believe me, Detective Sawyer, I rarely saw anything like it in my life. People who went to sleep, and upon waking they lacked a kidney, an arm, blood. There was a man who had his right eye removed. I worked alongside the police on that case. We'd been chasing Cheetah for almost three weeks, until we finally found a pattern in her attacks. One of the detectives managed to find out who would be the next victim. We managed to catch Cheetah and most of her band before she attacked the woman. I used my lasso on her and asked her "Who are you stealing the organs for?". She replied "The Doctor"".

"Lillian Luthor," said Maggie.

Diana didn't look her in the eyes. "I didn't know it then. Great Hera, I didn't know for a long time. In Cheetah's lair, we didn't find anything that could reveal the identity of 'The Doctor'. And meanwhile, my friendship with Lillian was increasingly deteriorating. I didn't recognize her, Maggie. She had... had... changed." She clasped her hands together. "One night I decided to go to her house, ask her what was going on, try to solve the problem. She told me to go away, that she didn't have time to lose on nonsense. I returned the next day. She told me to leave again. I decided to give her some space, still naively believing it was stress from the job.

And then I started to suspect." Diana looked into her eyes. "I thought maybe someone was threatening her. That maybe she was in some serious trouble and couldn't tell me. One night I was flying back to the embassy. As I passed her house at four in the morning, I saw her car leave. Not her limo. Her normal golden Volkswagen, the one she loved to drive on Saturdays. I decided to follow her. Lillian stopped at one of LuthorCorp's private labs. I sneaked into the lab via the roof.

And I saw her."

Diana put her hand to her mouth, trying to control her nausea. Maggie's eyes were bright.

"She had a teenager tied up on a stretcher. She was about to open him up." Her hand shook a little. "The woman who had given my daughter her first toy was about to open a teenager up like a pig."

"What happened after?"

"I left my hiding place and saved the boy. Lillian turned whiter than a corpse... And then she started yelling at me. Yes, yelling at me. Lillian Luthor was yelling at me like a possessed woman. The words she told me... I still have nightmares about that moment."

"Did she say why she did it?"

"She said that I didn't understand because I was not 'a normal person', with 'normal weaknesses'. That sometimes, humanity must make sacrifices to save itself. That I had just ruined the possibility of getting a cure for at least twenty deadly diseases. And then... then she said she didn't want to see me again, told to keep away from her, from her life and from her family. That was the last time we talked."

"Did you tell the police?"

"Of course." Diana nodded. "The next morning everything was clean, the boy didn't appear anywhere, and LuthorCorp was totally clear of any kind of evidence. I'm not saying they didn't believe me, but... there was no evidence." She shrugged. "Lillian and I didn't speak again. And there were no further organ thefts."

"When was the last time you saw Lutessa?" Maggie asked. "That girl disappeared overnight. It can't be a coincidence."

"The last time I saw Lutessa, she and Lena were playing at the embassy. It was Thanksgiving, and Lillian came to visit me."

"What was she like?"

"Blonde, blue eyes, freckles, small for her age. She was a very quiet little girl, able to sit still for hours. Or maybe she seemed quiet to me compared to Lena. Hera knows that Lena couldn't stand still for two minutes."

Maggie's phone began to vibrate. The detective apologized to Diana and checked the text message that had just arrived. Diana saw her face change to one of confusion.

"It's my girlfriend, Alex. She has found a clue." Maggie gave her cell phone to Diana again. Touching the screen, the detective enlarged a photograph of the cover of an old book. "This language seems to be Greek. I know the book is very old, but can you read it? Do you recognize the symbol next to the title?"

"I don't know this symbol, Maggie. I'm sorry." Diana moved closer to the cell phone. "The second word is too blurry. And the first... I'm not sure, but I think it says Κρίση, Krísi."

"What does that mean?"

"Crisis."

* * *

 **I just wanted to say that I'm imagining Gal as Diana. And Ana suggested to Jessica Chastain as Artemis, and she's perfect!**


	10. The Warrior's Story

**Artemis of Bana-Mighdall**

 **December 1987**

Artemis was sitting next to Alexa, on the stairs of the Temple of Hera. The night felt warm, with the sound of the crickets' songs in the nearby forest. However, more beautiful than the songs of the night was the sound of her mother-in-law yelling in frustration a few feet away.

"Lena, no, drop that! Give me that stone!"

"No!"

"Lena, I order you to give me that stone!"

"No no no!"

Her daughter started to run away from her grandmother, and Hippolyta had no choice but to pursue the infant. Since Lena had learned to walk, she hadn't stayed still for a minute. Which caused the Amazon Queen to be in an irritable mood. She may look like Diana, but Lena has my charming sense of humor, and Hippolyta knows it. She smirked. I love my daughter.

"You're bad," the teenager to her side said.

"Mmm? I have no idea what you mean, Alexa."

"Do you teach my niece to purposely misbehave with the Queen?" Alexa crossed her arms.

"Do you actually think I can do something like that? Who do you take me for?" Artemis smiled.

When Hippolyta finally caught her granddaughter and took the stone from her, Lena began to squirm with annoyance. Her moans of anger caught the attention of the Queen's personal guards, who had been watching the scene in silence. Those four need to have sex, especially Alkyone.

Artemis watched Alkyone whisper something to Charis, and she frowned.

"Something you want to share with us?" Artemis asked the royal guards.

Hippolyta stopped trying to calm Lena, and looked at the other Amazons. Lena managed to escape from her grandmother's arms and went to sit on Alexa's lap.

"Your daughter is already walking quite well, Artemis," Alkyone said with a shrug. "When Diana learned to walk, we immediately put a knife in her hand. Don't you think it's time for her to start training?"

"There is nothing I would like more than to teach Lena how to use a knife," Artemis said, patting her daughter sitting on her sister's lap. "What do you think, Lena? Do you want to attack your grandmother with a knife instead of a stone?"

"Careful, Artemis," snorted Hippolyta. "That you married my daughter doesn't mean I can't lock you up in a dungeon."

Lena's face lit up as she tried to pronounce 'dungeon'. Alexa ruffled her ink black hair and hugged her.

"Your concern for my daughter is moving, Alkyone," Artemis said, trying to sound the least sarcastic. "But Lena will start training after her birthday. Right, Lena?"

"No!" Lena frowned. "No wan!"

Tartarus, she spends a lot of time with Alexa.

"I don't see her very enthusiastic about honoring her culture," said Myrto, the royal archer, joining Alkyone and Charis.

"It's because she's too young. I didn't like fighting either when I was her age." Alexa kissed Lena's hair. "I was always better with the pen than with the sword."

Myrto frowned. "Honestly, Alexa, how did you survive in Bana-Mighdall?"

Before Artemis could defend her younger sister, a dry noise interrupted her. Diana landed in the courtyard, next to her mother. Lena smiled and exclaimed 'mommy!', but Artemis' wife's smile was opaque, sad. Artemis felt a pang of worry.

Hippolyta enveloped Diana in a short embrace. "Welcome back, my sun and stars." The Queen caressed her face, and as she did so she realized the sadness in her eyes. "Diana? Has something happened?"

The brunette shrugged and sighed, doing her best to smile. She separated from her mother and went to Artemis. Diana kissed her on the lips and sat next to her, caressing her hand. Lena immediately left her aunt's lap to go and hug her mother. Diana wrapped her in her arms and kissed her small shoulder.

"Diana?" asked Artemis.

Diana looked up and looked at her wife, then her mother and Alexa, and even shared a brief glance with the royal guards.

"I've lost a friend."

Artemis let out the air she didn't know she was holding.

"Died fighting?" Artemis asked.

"She's not physically dead." Diana's face darkened. "But from now on, she's dead to me."

* * *

 **The hopeful mother**

 **7:13 PM**

Artemis finished telling the story and let out a long sigh. She didn't look away from Lena at any point in the conversation. While she had spoken, her daughter (I'll never lose you again) had tried to remain calm, but her hand shook a little when she heard what Lillian had done to so many people thirty years ago. The journalist (Oh Isis, a journalist) took her hand lovingly, stroking her thumb.

She wished she could close the distance and hug Lena, but didn't want to push her to do anything she didn't want. She's as beautiful as Diana. For a second, she was selfish enough to be jealous of the journalist for being able to comfort her.

Easy, Artemis. She's in front of you, breathing. That has to be enough for now.

The journalist's cell phone rang. Artemis watched the girl take it, open her eyes slightly, frown, then reject the call.

"Who was it?" Lena asked.

"It's not important now." The journalist, Kara, stroked Lena's arm. "It can wait. Please, continue," she told Artemis.

Lena looked at her again, and Artemis felt a weight in her stomach, knowing she would have to remember that day. She took a deep breath to keep calm, stroked her thumb, and sat upright.

"Do you know what a Shim'Tar is, Lena?"

"I know," Kara replied, looking at both women. "In Bana-Mighdall, Shim'Tar is what they call their greatest warrior. She who has never been defeated. The Shim'Tar has different rights and obligations than... others Amazons." Kara blushed as she felt the redhead's stunned gaze. "Umm, my sister used to tell me stories about Amazons."

Artemis smiled a little. "I used to be Shim'Tar, thirty years ago." Her smile subsided. "Every year, in Bana-Mighdall the festival of the hunt is celebrated, in honor to Neit. It's the only party we have in the year, and as Shim'Tar, I had to participate in the celebration. Coincidentally, the date coincided with your second birthday." Artemis watched Lena entwine her fingers with her girlfriend's. "So we took you." She clenched her fists a little.

"The three of us, and your grandmother's four personal guards, set out for Bana-Mighdall. Hippolyta thought it would be seen as a sign of respect that we carried an entourage emdash or perhaps she just wanted to annoy me, I don't know. When we arrived, since it seemed that you weren't going to get tired of crying because of the heat, we went into the river to play and you stopped crying. Then you began to explore around you, always accompanied by a guard, or one of the women of my people. The Bana are women of war, tough and ferocious, with contempt for sentimentality. But even Queen Anahid laughed when you put an arrowhead in the seat of Charis, one of the guards.

It happened after the third day of the celebration." Artemis sighed a little louder.

* * *

 **The Happy Shim'Tar**

 **1988**

Artemis watched Diana sleep, hugging her pillow. A black curl tickled her nose. She smiled and removed the strand of hair from her face. She seems to have had a good time last night.

Feeling the desire to do something nice for her wife, the redhead got out of bed and put on her clothes. At that hour of the day it was not hot yet, because the morning sun was hidden in the mountains. However, it will be quite hot later. I'll have to bathe Lena before lunch. Artemis left the bedroom she occupied with Diana and walked to the kitchen. The temple of Isis was the place most similar to a palace that the city had. Unlike the beauty of Themyscira, Bana-Mighdall was a rustic, simple city. When Artemis was a child, they lacked almost everything except pride and ferocity.

She picked up a bowl of figs from the kitchen, and took them to her bedroom, yawning. She opened the door softly, smiling at the figure of Diana illuminated by the morning light. Artemis climbed back onto the bed, hugging Diana and kissing her behind her ear.

"Mmm, what time is it?" whispered the princess.

"The sun hasn't yet come out from behind the mountains. It must be almost 8:00," Artemis whispered from her shoulder.

"What time did you put Lena to bed last night?"

"Almost 10:00," she murmured with her eyes closed. "She had a tantrum because she wanted to play in the river. Honestly, I don't know where I get so much patience."

"The power of motherly love?"

"Mmm, maybe. But you could reward me better for being so wonderful, princess. The gratification of maternal love isn't enough. "

Diana smiled and rolled over to her wife, letting the sheet slide a little. She brought her mouth close to that other appetizing mouth, that mouth that was hers and only hers to kiss as many times as she wanted. The brunette didn't close the distance, leaving her lips inches from her wife's.

"If you go and wake up Lena..." her index finger caressed her chin. "I'll give you whatever you ask for."

Artemis immediately left the bed, leaving their bedroom and moving down the hallway to the left. Lena's bedroom was the brightest, so she would not be frightened of the darkness. She opened the door and slowly walked over to the sleeping figure on the bed.

"Lena, wake up, it's time to get out of bed." Artemis shook her daughter a little. "Come on now, you have to prepare to go to... breakfast."

Lena wasn't there.

What she had thought was her daughter, was just a pillow and a pair of tangled sheets. Artemis looked dismayed at these objects, not understanding. She bent over and looked under the bed. Nothing. She looked in the small closet. Nothing.

"Lena?"

No one answered.

"Okay, you've already crossed the line. When I find you, I'll force you to eat carrots for the rest of the week, miss rebel."

Artemis stepped out of the bedroom, eyes wide as she made her way down the hall. She's already giving me headaches and she's only two years old. What is she going to do when she's fifteen? Artemis returned to her bedroom and shook Diana lightly.

"Di, wake up. Lena went back to hiding."

"Did you check under the bed?" Diana asked from her pillow.

"Of course I checked under the bed! Come on, the faster we find her, the faster I can eat figs from your body."

Diana let out a short sigh and left the bed.

Artemis looked for her in the southern part of the temple, and Diana in the north. The redhead searched literally everywhere. Cabinets, armories, basement, boxes. She even searched the section where the breeding men lived. It wasn't a big building, so she soon realized that Lena must have left the temple.

Her anger mingled with the first pang of worry. When she met Diana again, she was starting to worry too. I will punish her for two weeks. Diana hurried out of the temple and rose into the air, searching for her while yelling her name. Artemis met some of her Amazon sisters and asked if they hadn't seen Lena. No one had seen her, but they all started looking for her. Three weeks. I'll make her breathe carrots.

They had spent forty horrible minutes when Akila, her biological sister who was her rival for Shim'Tar's position, had sounded the alarm. Artemis felt her heart escape from her chest when she realized that the voice had come from the river. She trotted up to where other Amazons were already crowding. When she pulled them away, she found a totally wet Akila, holding a yellow moon-shaped stuffed toy dripping with water.

Someone let out a moan akin to that of a dying animal. Artemis realized that it had been her.

* * *

 **The woman who awoke from a nightmare**

 **8:10 PM**

"...We thought you had run away to play in the river."

She had her eyes closed. I refuse to cry. That will not happen. When Artemis was certain she would maintain her composure, she opened her eyes. Lena and Kara The Journalist stared at her with indescribable expressions.

I'm almost done. Just a little more.

"We found the body three days later." She didn't dare look at Lena. "We went... three... days without eating or sleeping, and when we found it..." she blinked very fast to kill those tears that wanted to fall. "I know that Diana stayed very still and fell to the floor in silence, without taking her eyes off the corpse. As for me, I ... I don't remember what I did. There are several versions of the events. Some Banas told me that I attacked twenty people with a dagger, others said it was thirty people, with a sword. I only know that I lost consciousness." This isn't admitting weakness. I'm telling the truth to my daughter. Everything is fine. You're almost done. "The body was... was..." She bit her lip with all her strength. She felt the metallic taste of blood. Just. Stop. That. Was. Not. Lena. "The body had signs of three days of decomposition. V-various animals had..."

It came as an almost absurd surprise when the blonde girl pounced on her and wrapped her in her arms. Her mind couldn't believe she was being hugged tightly. Very tightly. Artemis gritted her teeth and rejected her natural urge to push the girl away. No. Instead, she stood still, allowing the girl to hug her. The girl (Kara, it's Kara) was trembling slightly.

"An innocent child died. Lillian is a monster," Kara whispered, so low that only Artemis could hear.

Lena's eyes met hers, the same color of green talking in silence. Lena had a hand pressing on her girlfriend's shoulder, as if she needed to touch her to know that everything was absolutely real. Tentatively, biting her lip, Lena took the redhead's hand and squeezed lightly.

Fine, just one tear, just one. Artemis was frustrated when she spilled three. Damn it.

Five minutes passed in which Artemis allowed Kara to embrace her, after which the blonde girl let go of her and returned to her place next to her girlfriend. Her eyes were slightly red, but she didn't look embarrassed in the slightest. What kind of strange force does this girl have? She has the eyes of a seventy-year-old woman, who has seen worlds disappear and be born. She has eyes like Diana's.

Lena sighed. "And that's why Diana never came back from her... from our... from Themyscira?"

"She was never able to return to Bana-Mighdall either." Artemis was relieved, relieved that the worst had already happened. "I never went back either. Not even when Queen Anahid died and was succeeded by her daughter Karna. Akila is Shim'Tar now. As far as I know, she is doing it very well."

Lena sighed, closed her eyes for a moment, let the tension leave her body, and rose. She took her cell phone, watched her for a moment, and started typing.

"Who are you texting, Lena?" Kara asked.

"Maggie." The brunette answered without looking up. "Kara, we'd better change clothes. It's 8:20, but we have to be ready before it gets late. This isn't going to wait until tomorrow. "

"What are you talking about?" Kara raised her eyebrows.

"We'll go to my home." Lena shook her head vigorously. "I mean we're going to Luthor Manor, just outside Metropolis."

"What? Lena, are you...?"

"I'm sure," Lena said. "I've lived in that house all my life. Or at least, all the life I remember. I never thought I'd go back, but I have no choice if I want to discover the truth." Lena pursed her lips. "Now go get your pants on, please, Puppy."


	11. Fallen into Disgrace

**Thanks for your support! If you took the time to leave a review I would appreciate it a lot. (ThankYou, (GRACIAS) Harukichiru,** **Synergy,** **TheoMoose,** **Jemjo storys)**

* * *

 **Lena (Luthor?)**

 **8:25 PM**

Lena didn't remember the last time she had taken a bus. _It must have been that time I ran away from school to go and spy on the girls of the dance school._ The wool cap that she had put on to go unnoticed stung a little. She rested her cheek on the cold glass, watching Kara's reflection at her side.

It had taken a lot of work, but she had got Artemis not to carry that huge bow in her back. The Amazon had had to settle for a pair of daggers ( _where the heck did she get them?_ ) hidden in her belt. She was sitting a seat behind, arms crossed, looking at the window too. For a moment their glances met in the reflection of the window. Lena held her gaze for four seconds, then looked away.

Beside her, Kara was fighting her own nervousness. Her girlfriend watched all with fascination barely hidden in her eyes. It seemed like the first time she was getting on a bus. _Which is probably true. But one thing is to hug a woman you just met and another very different is to tell her that you are Supergirl. We'll have to keep the secret for now._ Lena took her girlfriend's hand and kissed her knuckles.

"How are you?" Lena asked.

"Uh? F-Fine. I mean, I'm not afraid to burst into Lex Luthor's house at night or anything..." Kara smiled nervously and Lena smiled back. "Umm, there are no... traps for intruders, right?"

"We won't enter as intruders, honey. I have the access card to enter."

"And if not, we can always break the door." Artemis said without looking up from her nails.

Kara's cell phone vibrated again. Lena watched her girlfriend take it, bite her lip, sigh wearily, and then accept the call.

 _"Clark."_ whispered Kara. _"... Yes, I'm fine, I'm with Lena ... What? ... Clark, speak slower... I know, Clark, I-... Look, I can't talk right now, I'm in the middle of ... Clark, **I know** , I'm being careful. I seriously can't ... Oh, yeah. Go, I'll call you later."_

When Kara hung up, Lena was looking at her, asking in silence. And though she couldn't see her, Lena knew that Artemis was paying attention too. Kara smiled slightly and took her hand.

"It's okay, Clark just wanted to make sure I'm okay." Kara squeezed her hand. "He had an emergency and had to hang up. I'll call him later." Kara opened her eyes, as if remembering something. "I need to tell Alex where I'm going."

While Kara wrote a text message, Lena turned her head to look at the Amazon ( _my God my mother calm down Lena just smile_ ). Artemis looked back at her, smiling with a hint of mischief.

"Are you nervous?" She asked.

Lena shrugged, looking away. "Anxious would be the right word." she whispered. "I haven't been in that house in years. And I don't even know what I have to look for. But if there's anything to find, it's there." Lena sighed. "Lillian would only hide her secrets in a place where she and only she could have full access."

Ten minutes later, they got off the bus, in a residential neighborhood just outside Metropolis. The night was young, the beautiful houses around it still didn't have their lights on. At the end of the street, Lena could see the familiar shape of her childhood home. _I remembered it bigger._ She shared a glance with her girlfriend and the Amazon, and the three of them advanced along the street.

Luthor Manor wasn't the largest mansion on the street, but yes the most elegant. Lena still remembered how Lionel had been a fan of details. The mansion was painted in warm colours, yellow and brown, but at night it seemed to Lena that the colors were more dead than ever. _Does that surprise you? Nobody has lived there for almost five years._

Lena saw Maggie leaning her back on the brick wall. The detective watched the street, taking care of not being seen by any neighbor. Maggie walked up to the door as she saw her friends approach.

"We'll talk inside. All the neighbors could see us here" she said, still looking around.

Lena took out her wallet, opened it, and pulled out a small plastic card from the outside. She walked over to the electrical panel and slid it over its surface. A small green light shone, and the CEO of L-Corp opened the lacquered aluminum gate.

Lena tried not to let the memories flood her as they walked through the front garden. _There Lex and I used to play chess._ Lena looked away. _And here we used to play Dragon Castle_. Lena gritted her teeth. _And that's the tree where I used to go when I was sad..._

 _"Lena, don't cry, come on. You know you shouldn't pay attention to him. He didn't mean it."_

 _"L-Lex ..."_

 _"Come on, Lena. Dad was just very angry and you showed up at a bad time. He didn't mean it. I promise."_

 _"Nobody loves Me."_

 _"That's a lie, don't say it again. I love you. You're my little sister and I'll always love you."_

 _"Promise me, Lex?"_

 _"I promise."_

She hadn't realized that her hand was shaking until Kara grabbed it.

The brunette slid her card back into the door panel of the mansion. With a mechanical sound, the second panel glowed green. The door opened with a squeak. The four women were received in utter darkness. Lena was going to turn on the lights, but she was gently stopped by Maggie.

"Neighbors could see the lights."

Lena nodded.

The detective pulled out three lanterns from her jacket, giving one to the Amazon and one to the business woman.

"Before we start, there's something you have to see." Maggie took her cell phone. "Alex sent me this photo a while ago."

On Maggie's cell phone, Lena could see the cover of an old book. The letters were blurry and confused, but a symbol like an atom was clearly visible. Lena studied it closely.

"They found this book in Lillian's cell." Maggie explained. "I come from the hospital. I asked Diana if she knew what it meant, and she said no." She looked at the redhead. "And what about you?"

"I've never seen that symbol in my life. However, I think that word there..."

"Kρίση." Maggie murmured. "Crisis."

Lena felt the worry emanate from Maggie's mouth. _The word 'Crisis' never auspices anything good._

"We have to separate." Lena said, using her professional voice. "Lillian's office is at the end of the corridor. Lionel's one over there. The police have searched the house eleven times in the past few years, but knowing Lillian ( _she's not my mother, never again_ ), it never hurts to check." Lena quickly looked around. "Kara and I will check upstairs."

Nodding quickly, Maggie and Artemis ( _God she's my mother_ ) went to the offices of Lionel and Lillian respectively. Kara took her hand and they went toward the stairs.

"Lena, do you have any idea what we're looking for?" Kara asked in a low voice.

"Whatever your x-ray vision finds, Supergirl." They came upstairs, where a long corridor extended to both sides. "A diary, letters, documents. I honestly don't know. The most possible thing is that there's nothing. But there has to be something somewhere, and here is the only place I could start looking."

Kara looked at her intensely, then took off her glasses.

Lena was always fascinated when she saw Kara use her X-ray vision. No matter how many times Kara explained it to her, she had never imagined what it would be like to have that power. _The ability to be aware of things that were at unimaginable distances._ Silently, Kara Zor-El flew to the first room down the hall. _Lionel and Lillian's bedroom_. Ten seconds later, she came out again, and got into the next room. _Lex's first office_. Kara checked a closet, Lex's bedroom, and a small playroom. When she opened the last room, she stopped for a moment, floating half a meter off the floor.

Lena stood behind her. "This was my bedroom."

 _And it hasn't changed at all._ The walls were still bubblegum pink, the closet was next to the window, there was still a small desk next to a bookcase, and Lena felt twelve again. Like a good child of the nineties, she had hung posters of her favorite movies and cartoons on the right wall. _How many nights have I dreamed that my life was a movie? Where all I had to do was work hard enough to get my happy ending… Where at the end of the story, my parents would hug me and tell me they were happy that I was their daughter._

Kara returned to the floor softly. There was an old picture of Lena and Lex on the bedside table, looking at the camera, smiles on their faces and some dinosaur toys on the floor. _I remember that moment, it was the first time we saw Jurassic Park._ Time seemed to pause as Lena saw her girlfriend smile sweetly, taking the picture in her hands.

"That photo must be a thousand years old." Lena whispered.

"Just when I thought I couldn't love you more... I find a picture of you as a child." Kara smiled at her, her teeth reflecting the light. "Umm... can I keep it?"

Lena suppressed her urges to kiss her girlfriend ( _Not now, I have to concentrate_ ) and nodded, smiling. Kara put the photo in the pocket of her coat.

"There's nothing here either." the Kryptonian whispered. She went to the window and opened it, looking outward. "We should check the back garden."

Kara went out the window, extending her arms to her. Lena walked to her girlfriend and was lifted into her arms, as if she weighed just like a bag. Keeping her eyes fixed on the sky ( _Don't look down_ ), Lena felt the cool air dance on her face as Kara Zor-El descended into the backyard. Once on the ground, Kara released her gently and began to search through the trees.

Unlike the front garden, the back garden had more trees and plants growing free in the corners. Before, there had also been flowers of all colors, flowers that Lex had ordered to plant to be able to observe them from his window. No one would ever believe her if she told them Lex Luthor liked flowers. _("Look at this, Lena, these flowers are called Plumerias, not many people find them beauty, but I think I like them better than roses. Everybody likes roses, that bores me.")_

Kara had stopped by a old water well, watching it closely.

"That's never had any water." Lena explained. "Lionel liked this water well, he thought it was picturesque." Kara kept staring at it. "Is something wrong with the well, Kara?"

"I think I see something."

Kara Zor-El jumped into the well. Lena heard a scratchy sound, like old rocks rubbing against each other. Then a great rumble that kept rumbling in her ears. Kara came back out of the well with a package with dirt stains on her hands.

"I'm sure this isn't a stone." said her girlfriend, trying to to take the dirt out of her hands.

"What is it, Kara?"

"Um..." Kara narrowed her eyes. "Photographs."

Lena and Kara sat on the lawn, opening the pack carefully. The wrapper contained a box of pine worn by time. Lena tried to open it, but it was locked.

"Kara, please?"

Kara Zor-El took the box and opened it with a movement of her wrist. As she had said before, Lena found herself in the middle of a bundle of old photographs, discolored and damp. Kara began to spread them on the floor. Lena felt her heart shrink.

 _Lex_

Her brother ( _he must be no more than three years old_ ) was in many photographs, with an impossibly young Lillian and Lionel. In some, next to a blond baby looking curiously at the camera.

 _Lutessa._ Lena couldn't stop looking at the baby. Her throat was dry and a rancid heat ran down her esophagus. _Lutessa Lena Luthor. And I have lived her life._

"Lena."

Kara put her hand into the box, taking out what Lena thought was a thin chain. In the dim light, the brunette saw a silver medallion, large and resplendent. Lena opened her mouth in amazement and took it in her hands. On one side, the medallion had engraved a beautiful golden 'V', in the center of which was a small...

"It's the same symbol of the book." Kara said, observing the object intently.

Lena flipped over the medallion. Behind it was a beautiful gold design. The brunette brought it to her face.

Kara didn't need to move to see it much more clearly than she did. "It looks like a ghost."

"I don't think so, it looks like a woman coming out of a well." Lena ran her fingers through the image. "A woman coming out of a well..." She stared at Kara. "I don't know much about Greek mythology, but this can only be Aletheia, the goddess of truth."

* * *

 **Superman**

 **8:30 PM**

 _"Kara, are you okay? What happened?... All the press has gone crazy! You have to take care of yourself! Lena has become the target of public attention... No, no, no, our facades are based on the fact that nobody notices us... The press won't leave you in peace now... Kara, I have to go! I have a bomb threat! Bye!"_

Superman hung up the phone and took off into the sky. The water tower where he had been sitting swayed a little. _It's as if all the problems come together_ , said a sulky voice in his head, much like Lois'. And Lois was very grumpy from the day before.

Superman flew to the roof of Princeton Plaisboro Hospital, where a bald man in a ridiculous ( _numbers?)_ suit was preparing a bomb.

"Hey, you." Superman said aloud. "I give you a chance. Get away from that bomb and I promise I won't hurt you. "

The ugly man turned, surprised, and then smiled.

"Ho ho ho Superman!" _What the heck?_ "I'm very pleased to see you. You have arrived just in time to see Calendar Man exert justice against the wicked! I invite you to sit down and enjoy the vendetta of the oppressed."

"...Okay, sir, you're having some sort of problem. Get away from that bomb and I can get you some help. I really don't want to hurt you."

Calendar Man frowned. "If Superman isn't going to exercise justice, then...!"

 ** _PAMP!_**

A crutch flew from somewhere, striking the man right in the head. Calendar Man fell immediately to the floor, remaining motionless.

"Honestly, I've never understood why they're allowed to talk so much."

Superman looked up at the rooftop door, to find the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Her hair was a brilliant black, like a night dotted with stars. Her face seemed to have been carved by hand by some great ancient artist ( _I have seen that face before_ ). She wore a hospital gown, and had a cast on her right leg.

The woman went out on the roof, hopping on one foot to her crutch. Superman reacted, bending over to pick it up and give it to the woman.

"Thank you." She said smiling. "You must be Superman. Nice to meet you."

"Oh, okay, it's also a- Wait, you're Wonder Woman!"

She smiled and held out her hand. "Diana, please."

"Well, if I can call you Diana, you can call me Kal." Clark shook his hand. At her look of surprise, Superman blushed. "Umm, it's not my secret identity. It's my kryptonian name. And it's not really a secret, so..."

"Kal sounds good." Diana smiled. "I've heard a lot about you. You're kinder than I imagined, Kal."

Superman smiled genuinely. _It's Wonder Woman!_ "Thank you, really. I've grown up hearing stories about you. And now you're here and it's... Oh. "

Overcoming his initial excitement, Clark recalled what he had seen on television the day before. _My God, Lena Luthor is..._ He felt suddenly uncomfortable, not knowing what to say. His gaze fell on the woman's injured leg. Diana noticed.

"Your cousin is really strong." There wasn't a hint of grudge in those blue eyes.

"Some people say that she's stronger than me." Clark shrugged. "I don't mean to imply you're weak or anything like that, but shouldn't you be resting?"

"My doctor is a strange man." Diana put her hand on her hip. "I asked if my leg was getting better. He looked into my eyes, wrinkled his mouth, and just said ' _go for a walk and see for yourself'_. And then he began to eat a lollipop. It was weird."

"Is your doctor a sarcastic man with a beard, cane, and who doesn't wear a white coat?"

"Yes." Diana nodded. "Do you know him?"

 _Unfortunately. Lois hates hospitals because of him._

Superman heard a dry moan. The man in a suit of calendar began to regain consciousness, then sat down on the floor. He growled in pain and his eyes narrowed. Seeing both heroes, his face turned into a grimace of anger.

"You should be the first to support me, not stop me." he said angrily.

"Why should we approve of you killing innocent people?" Diana replied, puzzled and slightly irritated. "Great Hera, what is with this man?"

"I didn't want to kill innocent people." said Calendar Man. "I wanted to kill the last Luthor! Don't you realize that we're better off if that woman dies? Lionel is dead, Lex is in jail, and the girl turned out to be an Amazon. With Lillian dead we could..."

"Are you saying Lillian Luthor is in this hospital?"

 _Oh oh._

"He's crazy, Diana, don't listen to him."

"Is Lillian Luthor in this hospital?" Wonder Woman ignored him. "Is that what you're saying? Are you sure about that?"

"Of course I'm sure of that!" Replied the bald man. "She's right below us. The bomb was for her room. Just let me prepare my bomb and... "

Superman tapped the man on his head with his little finger. He fell unconscious again.

Diana's lips were tight, her eyes slightly clouded. Her right fist was tightly closed. _Oh, God, please..._

"Lillian's in this hospital."

"Diana, I can't allow..."

"I won't hurt her." Diana looked at him. "I promised your cousin. For better or for worse, Lillian Luthor's fate is out of my hands." She sighed loudly. "I'll go back inside. It was a pleasure, Kal."

Wonder Woman began to move toward the door, walking slowly with her slightly dented crutch. Superman hesitated for a moment whether to believe in her or not. _Come on, she's Wonder Woman... If she has promised..._

Diana went out the door. Superman hesitated a moment, then took Calendar Man in his arms and flew to the nearest police station.

* * *

 **Diana of Themyscira**

 **8:55**

Of course, the door of the room was guarded by two policemen. That was no problem for someone who could fly and enter through the window. Leg wounded or not, an Amazon never allowed herself to be overcome by any obstacle.

A dim light shone in the room, but Diana felt the darkness stab deep into her soul as she set her eyes on the woman in the bed. To her surprise, Lilly looked better than she'd imagined. The passage of time had not changed her face, her scant wrinkles gave her an air of aristocracy rather than decadence.

 _Not like that time._

Diana walked slowly, taking care of her injured leg, and sat down in the chair by the bed, watching the woman in it. A soft beep bounced through the walls of the room. Lillian's left hand was handcuffed to the bed. The Amazon smiled.

"Hello Lilly." Her hand moved to the nightstand, where she knew the doctors kept the emergency tools. "You look pretty good for your age. At age fifty-six, Corina was blind and weak. And a year later she died. I remember reading some of her poems in her _ekphora._ "

Diana found a black velvet case. Opening it, she saw the spare medical instruments.

"It became natural." She looked for something sharp inside. "Bury my friends, I mean. I have done it many times, and will continue to do so forever. I don't remember the number of friends I've buried over the years. I should have buried you too." She found a scalpel, and tried its tip on her finger. "You should have died thirty years ago." It was sharp. "You should have died being Lilly, and not living to become the monster you're now. I should have cried at your funeral, remembering all the good times we shared."

"I still remember them, in fact. I could never forget them." She stroked her neck with the tip of the scalpel. "Like when you told me about Chicago, your childhood there and your family. Or that awkward date with Red Panzer that you rescued me from, lying about a car accident or something. Oh, and how to forget the Contest? You were there supporting me. It was the first time you saw Artemis. What did you say? _'You have to win because that savage can burn the world if she wins,_ ' or something."

Diana pressed the scalpel lightly. The skin cracked. Diana stared at the spot where the sharp blade bit her skin.

"I never met someone like you." She pressed a little more. "A warrior who never took a sword in her life. You fought your battles only with your intellect. And you won them all, always." She pressedd a little more. "You always won. Like when you destroyed the evidence that linked you to the people you hurt. Like when you took my daughter away, made me believe that she was dead, and raised her as if she were yours."

Diana sank the scalpel deepest. A thread of blood began to flow from the wound.

"Oh, Lilly, I thought there was no pain greater than that of loss, until you taught me the pain of betrayal. And not to just me." she raised the scalpel again. "You ruined my daughter's life. You ruined my wife's life. And there are simply no words to describe _how. much. I. hate. you...Ατίμωση."_

Diana plunged the scalpel into the palm of Lillian's hand. Blood began to flow from the wound, staining the bed. Diana looked in her face for some sign of pain, of consciousness. There was nothing.

"I won't kill you." she whispered. "I won't let you take me away from Lena again. You've sunken us all into disgrace, Lillian, but we can still get out of it." Diana twisted the scalpel. "But you... you've already fallen too deep into disgrace. A circle of Tartarus where I can't access. May the Goddesses and Lena judge you, I'm done with you."

Diana got up, took the scalpel, and put it in her boot. She picked up her crutch and started back toward the window.

"After all, you have been dead to me for thirty years."

* * *

 **BONUS**

 **National City**

Winn Schott had many good qualities. He was computer expert, was personal designer of several superhero suits, was the God of Karaoke, and was the best Pokémon Master in the city. Unfortunately, being fast wasn't one of his many qualities.

And that's why Winn was panting as he ran for her life.

 _"Mr. Schott, please, talk to us!"_

 _"Mr. Schott, are you personal friend of Lena Luthor!?"_

 _"Did you know about Miss Luthor's secret inheritance?"_

 _"Have you met Wonder Woman!?"_

"LEAVE ME ALONE!"

Winn kept runing as if he were being chased by Voldemort, until he started to get dizzy. He could hear the journalists running after him, chasing him, hunting him, wanting his flesh and blood. After almost being almost hit by a car twice, Winn managed to get to a known building. _This is where M'gann lives. Thanks God, I'll ask for help in her home. Please, please, M'gann, you have to be home. I'm too cute to die._

Winn entered the building, running down the stairs to the second floor. His vision began to cloud over fatigue. _What was M'gann's number? 206 or 205?_ He knocked on the door of the apartment 206. A bald man with blue teeth man opened the door, looked at Winn, and said _"Every day you look more beautiful, Mabel._ " Realizing the apartment he was looking for was the 205, Winn turned around. When he reached the correct door, he started knocking on very serenely.

"M'gaaaaann!" Winn knocked (shouted) on the door. "M'gaaaaann!"

 _"Who's there?"_

"M'gann, I'm Winn, please open the door! They're after me! I can feel it in my soul! M'gaaaaaaaann!"

Winn almost fell when the Martian opened the door. Regaining his balance, he entered quickly and closed the door behind him. Only then he could catch her breath, resting his hands on his knees.

"Oh God..." he could see M'gann's legs. "Thank you... so much... I owe you _\- AAH!_ "

Winn drew back, frightened when he saw M'gann. There were dark circles around her eyes, her hair was messy, her nose was red, and she looked much more asleep than awake. _She has become a zombie!_

"Don't shout, Schott." _Can zombies talk?_

"Umm... okay." Winn fixed his tie. "M'gann, are you... okay?"

"No, genius, I'm not okay." the Martian grunted. "I've been sick all morning. All I want is to sleep. However, you seemed pretty desperate." M'gann coughed. "What happened to you?"

"Journalists, M'gann." Winn took her by the shoulders, relieved that she wasn't a zombie. "They'r-re c-chasing me."

"Winn..."

"I hear their voices chasing me, screaming my name, wanting a piece of me."

"Winn, you're scaring me."

"They're chasing me M'gann! They want my soul! THEY COME FOR ME!"

"WINN!"

M'gann's hand hit Winn's cheek.

"Ahh... Thanks, I think I needed it."

M'gann slapped him again.

"AH! What was that for!?"

"For scaring me." The Martian put her hands on her hips. "Now stand still and be good or- _HMP_!"

The Martian's eyes widened so much they seemed about to fall. She put her hands in her mouth, running at full speed to the bathroom. _Poor M'gann, I didn't know that the Martians could also catch cold._

 ** _*Knock Knock*_**

Someone knocked on the door.

Winn Schott had a brief moment of panic in which he considered jumping out the window. _No, enough of running away. Are you a man or a mouse?_ Winn sighed deeply. He looked around, and picked up a broom he found leaning in a corner. The technician braced himself and took the latch. _May the Force be with me._

Exclaiming a battle cry worthy of being remembered for millennia, Winn opened the door and lifted the broom.

"Go back to hell, evil creatures!"

"WINN!"

Mon-El dodged the broom in time.

"Mon-El?"

"Winn!"

"Mon-El?"

"WINN!"

The daxamite took his friend's broom out of his hand and tossed it away.

"Winn, what the heck!?"

"I thought you were a journalist."

"What?" Mon-El closed the door behind him. "I'm going away for two week and everyone has gone crazy. What happened?"

M'gann entered the room, looking much worse than before. She opened her mouth to speak, closed it again, and ran back to the bathroom.

Winn sighed. "Come on, Lun, we have much to talk about."

* * *

 **Emm... yes, the doctor is Gregory House XD**  
 **Calendar Man belongs to the Batman fandom.**  
 **Ekphora: Funeral procession in ancient Greece**  
 **Ατίμωση: Disgrace.**


	12. The Shadow

**Thanks for your support! If you took the time to leave a review I would appreciate it a lot. (ThankYou, (GRACIAS) tara loca y Harukichiru, , & Ari** **)**

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **10:11 PM**

Despite not needing too much light to have a better view than a hawk, Kara would rather be able to turn on the lights. Maggie looked a little creepy illuminated only by a lantern, but the lack of light didn't seem to bother her. The four of them were sitting inside the house, watching the photographs in the dim light of the lanterns.

Artemis nodded. "That's Lutessa." she said, pointing to a photograph.

"These photos are cut out." Maggie took a couple of photos that looked like they were cutted with a pair of scissors. "The person who was here was cut out with much anger."

Artemis took a couple of photos and brought them to her face. "In this arm there is an Amazon bracelet. It's Diana."

Lena sighed. "Lillian doesn't look like herself."

Kara could only agree. The woman who had almost exterminated all National City's aliens didn't look very evil in the photos. She looked young and full of dreams, though perhaps a little serious and tense.

"And as for this..." Maggie took the medallion and lit it with the lantern. "This is curious. A medallion with a woman coming out of a well, hidden inside a well. How did you say it was called this deity?"

"Aletheia," Lena said.

"What is that 'V 'coming from?"

"Diana is the expert in mythology..." Artemis leaned over to observe. "But the Roman name of Aletheia is Veritas."

Kara saw Maggie's dark eyes shimmer in the reflection of the medallion. The detective left it on the table.

"A medallion and photographs of a missing girl." Maggie bit her lip slightly. "I need to see the book Alex found with my own eyes. Let's go back to the hotel, I think we're done here."

Maggie took the photos and put them in her pocket. When she was about to take the medallion, Lena stopped her gently.

"I'd rather not be separated from this."

Kara watched Maggie nod and rise from the sofa. Lena caressed the engraving of the medallion one last time, before putting it on her neck.

The four of them headed for the front door, back out into the night air. It was colder than when they arrived, Kara knew it from the hair bristling at the nape of her companions. As they went out into the street, Lena put on her woolen cap again. Maggie approached her and they began to whisper about other possible places to review. Kara could hear the conversation without any problem, until she was distracted by the Egyptian amazon.

"So, could you get in and out of the water well without any problem?" She asked with feigned disinterest.

"Uh? A-Ah... Y-Yes, I did. It had no water and I'm good at climbing. I mean, I've never climbed a mountain or anything like that- "

"You're a box of surprises." Her eyes narrowed mischievously. "You're not so bad, to be a journalist."

"What's wrong with journalists?" Kara asked slightly offended.

"I guess nothing." She shrugged. "It's a personal mistrust I've had for a long time."

"Journalists are the voice of truth." Kara looked into her eyes. _They're green, like Lena's._

"And sometimes the truth hurts." The redhead frowned. Her eyes seemed to be in another time, another life. "I want to ask you something, Kara the Journalist."

"Umm, my surname is Danvers."

"Like the Agent Danvers?"

"She's my sister." Kara smiled. "You met her?"

"Briefly, she gives the impression of being a powerful warrior."

"She is." Kara said proudly.

"Kara Danvers..." Artemis lowered her voice even more. "How long have you been dating my daughter?"

"Umm... Two years? I think we started dating in September, so..."

"And she's happy with you?"

The memory of all Lena's smiles invaded Kara's mind. All the times she laughed at some bad joke, every time she sought refuge in her arms after a nightmare, stolen kisses, nights at her office, dinners with her friends, Lena's eyes shining with love, smiles of _happiness, happiness, happiness, happiness, Lena..._

"We're very happy together." Kara was surprised to have said it without stuttering. "I strive to make it so. Lena is... is... wonderful. I don't think anyone in the world deserves someone like her. But she has chosen me, so, ummm, I try to be the best I can be."

To her utter surprise, the infamous savage warrior smiled slightly, but genuinely.

"Well, good luck with that."

Kara blinked, puzzled. "Are not you going to give me the Shovel Talk?"

"What do you mean?" Artemis raised an eyebrow.

"Umm, you know. I thought you were going to threaten me." _Rao, I must look like an idiot right now._ "You know, _'if you hurt my daughter I'll hurt you,'_ or something like that." Kara giggled.

Artemis shook her head. "There's no need to threaten you, Kara Danvers. You look like a clever girl." She gave her a gentle squeeze. "I have no doubt that you already know that I'll gut you like a chicken and I'll let the vultures eat your corpse if you break Lena's heart. What's the point of saying the obvious?" She patted her shoulder.

 _Rao_

The four women arrived at the bus stop. Lena was still talking to Maggie in whispers, but she slipped a couple of curious glances at her girlfriend and the Amazon every so often. _Aww, she's so cute when she's worried about me!_ Kara smiled to make her understand that everything was fine. _I love you and I would never hurt you, so your mom will never... gut me or turn me in food for vultures._

When the bus arrived, the four went up and paid for the ticket. Maggie and Lena sat in the first seats, and the Amazon and Kara behind them. Kara was tempted to admit to Artemis right there that she was Supergirl so she could fly back to the hotel. _All these smells and noises make my senses go crazy._ Trying to overcome her rejection of public transport, Kara sighed and concentrated on what was happening in her life. _Lillian is hiding something, and she preferred to be in a coma rather than talking._ That didn't give her any good spines.

She put her head back on the seat and began to think like a journalist. _Okay, Kara, what do you know?_ She bit her lip, a bad habit from which she blamed Lena completely. _Think... Some strange symbols in a book and a medallion, and a little girl that simply vanished into thin air. Some time later, the Luthors 'adopt' Lena. Why? And where is the other girl, the real daughter of the Luthors? Will she be alive?_ Kara sighed. It wasn't very easy to concentrate on the bus with the noises and the murmur of Maggie and Lena. _What is it that drives humans to do evil? What reason did Lillian Luthor have to kidnap Lena?_ Maggie always said there were only three reasons to commit a crime: money, love, or because you're a psychopath _. She already had money, she wasn't a psycho yet... love maybe? What kind of love makes you kidnap a child and leave an anonymous corpse in place?_ Kara had so many questions that her head started to ache. Two seconds later, her eyes popped open when she realized something. _How she did?_

"Artemis." Kara murmured. The redhead looked at her. "Bana-Mighdall is isolated like Themyscira?"

"Before, we used to be totally isolated." she replied. "That changed when my sister became an ambassador. Believe me when I tell you it was extremely difficult, but Alexa convinced Queen Karna that opening up a little to the world could improve our lives."

"So everyone can enter and leave the city?"

"Of course not." Artemis pursed her lips. "Banas can leave, if that's what they want. But for someone to enter, it has to be invited by one of us."

"And what about the male slaves you have?"

"Wow, you did a good job investigating the Amazons, you have to be a good journalist." She shrugged. "We released them... mmm, thirty-four years ago, after the civil war with Themyscira. Those who had nowhere to go preferred to stay. What is it, girl?"

"How did Lillian get Lena out of te city?" Kara murmured.

For the first time, the redhead's face showed surprise.

"I mean, I'm not naive, I know she probably hired someone to kidnap Lena and leave the corpse in her place. But how did he or she enter without being seen? And how did he or she come out? And why didn't Lena cry?"

Artemis didn't speak for a few minutes, her eyebrows arched and her cheeks the same color as her hair. When she finally looked at her, Kara couldn't identify what emotions was burning in her green eyes.

"Are you saying that one of my sisters is a traitor?" She whispered.

"What? N-No, I mean, I don't know them, I just try to think one way-"

"There's no other way, Miss Danvers. It's impossible to circumvent the surveillance at the entrance to the city." Her face was hardened like a stone. Kara could finally identify the emotions in her eyes: pain and anger. "That night in Bana-Mighdall, one of my sisters betrayed me."

* * *

 **?**

 **10:56 PM**

The agent had taken the book to her room at the hotel. At that moment she was reading it, sitting cross-legged on her bed. Alexandra Danvers was certainly a woman to be careful about. _But neither she nor her lover has brought any luggage. They have no reason to look in the closet. And if they do, well, I can kill them easily._

It was possible to see what was happening in the room through the slits in the door. Danvers hadn't yet found the letter. It was imperative that she didn't find it. _Come on, make it easy, it would be a disaster if I had to kill you now. Go to the bathroom, go eat something, just give me a few seconds._

Someone knocked on the door of the hotel room. Danvers flinched like a cat, absorbed as she was in her attempts to understand the book.

 _"Who's there?"_

 _"Alex, it's Maggie. Did not you get my text?"_

 _That's. Go and open the door. Go and open the door._

Danvers got out of bed and left the bedroom. The second she disappeared, the closet door opened silently. The book was near, just on the edge of the bed. _All right, I got it. Now the letter... where is it? Come on, it has to be here, in the last pages, where- Here you are!_ The book was returned to its place. The voices began to approach. _Back to my hiding place._

The closet door closed the moment Alexandra Danvers returned to the bedroom, accompanied by four women. _Now comes the difficult part. If the Kryptonian or the Amazon suspect that I'm here, things could get a little complicated._

But neither the Kryptonian nor the Amazon seemed to suspect that they should pay more attention to the details of the room. Like the fact that there were six heartbeats and not five. _I can't hear everything they say, but..._

 _"We've found some photographs and a medallion,"_ said the voice of Danvers' lover, Sawyer.

" _It's the same symbol as the book,"_ Danvers said _. "This medallion is very strange. Is not this the girl of The Ring?"_

 _"It's Aletheia, the Greek goddess of truth, Agent Danvers,"_ the Amazon said quietly. _"I think that 'V' is from her Roman name, Veritas."_

Danvers watched the medallion for a while. Nobody spoke.

 _"And the photographs?"_ She asked at last.

 _"They're from before they adopted me... Lillian, Lionel, Lex, and that's Lutessa."_

 _What?_

 _"So this is Lutessa,"_ Danvers said. _"It must have been creepy for you, Lena."_

 _No._

 _"Not all the pictures are clear."_ Danvers' lover said. _"But I think with one or two, a computer expert could get..."_

The following words were detective jargon, incomprehensible to someone who wasn't a police officer and didn't watch detectives TV shows. _Hell, I have to get those photos._

 _"The book is too old,"_ Danvers said after a few minutes _. "I have been trying to use Google Translate with words that are readable, but it has no case if I can't use them in a complete sentence."_

 _"We should take the book to Diana, Alex,"_ said the Kryptonian.

 _"I was thinking the same thing, sis."_

 _"It could be an Greek older than the current one."_

 _"Well, we'll take care of that tomorrow."_ Danvers sighed wearily.

The footsteps of three people were heard as they moved toward the exit of the room. One of them stopped in the middle of the door. Her voice was barely audible.

 _"Artemis?"_

 _"...Yes, Lena?"_

 _"I'd like to visit Diana tomorrow."_ Her voice sounded a little different from normal. _"Before the press has knowledge of where we are, or where she is."_

 _"... I think she'd like that, Lena._ "

At last the three voices left the hotel room, and only Danvers and her lover remained. Danvers's light footsteps approached the other woman. _She's probably hugging her._

 _"A girl disappeared and Lena took her place... Do you have any idea what happened, Maggie?"_

 _"Many."_ She sighed. _"Too many."_

Danvers and her lover got ready for bed. They went under the covers, tried to read the book for thirty minutes, exchanged whispers, made love, and then fell asleep. _I hope they are totally asleep._

The closet door opened gently.

Sawyer was sleeping on her back, but Danvers had her face asleep right in front. Luckily, the detective had left the photographs on the table. _Tomorrow she would not find them there. Too bad I have no chance against the Kryptonian, or I could go for the medallion too._

But the most important thing now was to get out as fast and quiet as possible.

The night had grown incredibly colder. There was an alley nearby, with a weak light coming from a light pole that lit the street _. I can check the letter there_. Cold fingers, despite the white gloves in which they were, opened the letter.

 _"Diana:_

 _If you are reading this letter, it's because in some way you have discovered the truth._

 _I_ _ know you'll probably want to kill me as soon as you get the chance. But I need you to pay close attention._

 _It's important that Lena..."_

It wasn't necessary to continue reading. The letter broke into many small pieces.

* * *

 **Diana of Themyscira**

 **8:05 A.M**

"For the rest, you're 'wonderful'." said the doctor, bouncing a tennis ball in the middle of the room. "Although I'd recommend you stop fighting with aliens who have heat vision. Unless one of your powers is that you can fully regenerate your limbs like the salamanders."

Dr. House left the medical file on her bedside table and turned to leave. Diana stared at him, incredulous, listening to the pounding of her cane on the floor. _In all my years I have never seen anything like it._ _Either that man is a genius, or he's crazy._

Her leg felt a lot better, in fact. _I can't wait to take off this cast._ It was uncomfortable, it limited her movements too much and no Amazon should stay still for too long.

Diana wished she had something better to do than listen to her own thoughts. Thinking forced her to remember, and remembering made her feel an uneasy mixture of sadness and anger. _Calm down, Diana. You're not going to get Lena back this way. The first impression she had of you was bad enough._

She was about to fall asleep when a soft knock knocked on her bedroom door.

"Enter." she said automatically.

Her heart stopped beating for a few seconds when she saw

 ** _Lena._**

At the door was her thirty-two-year-old daughter, dressed in a flawless red business suit and with her black hair fastened on a tight ponytail. She had a small smile on her lips ( _but she doesn't look very happy, she looks tense... Did I scared her with what I did?)._

Still, it was Lena, and she was _there, standing in front of her, breathing._ Diana thought she might burst into tears of happiness, staring at the woman at the door for days without blinking. _She's still the most beautiful thing I've ever seen in my life._

"Hello." Lena said, her voice perhaps too sharp.

"Lena." A smile formed on her lips. "Hello."

"Are you resting? I can come back later."

"I'm fine." Diana thought her cheeks would start to hurt if she continued to smile like that. "Come in."

The heels of her shoes echoed in the room when Lena came in. She smoothed her skirt and sat in the chair by the bed. Now that she wasn't a mess, Diana could feel emanate the elegance and intelligence of her person, an aura as potent as it was intriguing.

 _This elegant woman is the same little girl who cried in my leg because she feared the darkness._

Lena continued to smile in that professional manner. "How is your leg?"

"Improving." Diana shrugged softly. "I think I can take the cast off tomorrow."

Lena nodded, still smiling in that hollow way. _What's wrong? Is she nervous? My precious girl..._

"How are you?" Diana asked, smiling.

That simple question seemed to form a crack in Lena's serene façade. Her smile faltered a little, but she recovered quickly.

"I don't have an answer to that question right now." The corner of her mouth tensed. _She's not looking directly at me._ "I needed to come here to finish being sure."

"Sure of what?"

"That's real." Lena pressed her lips imperceptibly. "That no one's playing a joke on me."

"Calm down." _Great Hera, she looks absolutely terrified and her voice doesn't even tremble._ Diana sat on the bed. "I assure you that I feel the same, Lena. I can't stop looking at you without believing that you will disappear." Diana smiled calmly. "Of course you're nervous. If I can do anything to stop you from being, tell me."

All her daughter's body language changed suddenly. From being tense and slightly defensive, it became hard as a stone.

"How sure are you that I'm nervous?"

 _Merciful Gaia, what did that traitor do to destroy her trust in this way? She can't even look me in the eye..._

"Well, Lena, since you came in you haven't stopped smiling like you wanted to sell me a car."

Lena laughed and her pupils became very small. She bit her lip so hard Diana thought it was going to bleed.

"I should have come with Kara." She swallowed. "Things always seem easier if she's with me." She looked down at her thumbs and then finally met her eyes. "I…"

"You've had to process a lot in a short time." Diana wanted from the bottom of her soul to reach out and touch her, but she didn't want to scare her. "It's totally understandable that we're all a little... tense."

Lena's eyes changed. From being formal and distant, they became melancholy and slightly wounded. "I never thought I'd have this conversation." Her hands came together and she began to twirl her thumbs. "I always thought... I always thought I had been abandoned." She sighed. "When I was nineteen, and my brother Lex was still my brother, he told me that we could look for my biological parents. I told him no." She sighed again. "I didn't want to... know anything about the people who had abandoned me. That's what I've believed all my life. "

Diana felt a lump forming in her stomach. "Lena... I understand." She gritted her teeth. "And I really hope you can believe me when I tell you that I have lived more than a thousand years in a sigh, but these thirty years that I have thought I would never see you again, have been eternal."

Lena's face seemed infinitely sad. _Don't kill Lillian. Don't kill Lillian._ "I believe you. I have seen it." She smiled a little. "I mean, I've been having dreams about you two for a while."

"I once read that the brain never gets rid of the memories." Diana clasped her hands together. "Only files them, and that sometimes those memories come back at the most unexpected time."

Lena sighed and rubbed her eyes. "My brain can't finish processing it." She pinched her nasal bridge.

"If you need some time..."

"It's not that." Lena replied. "It's just that you're... Wonder Woman." She looked away again. "You're perfect. What will happen when you realize my imperfections?" She sighed deeply, her hand trembling a little. "Look, I have no choice but to be honest. Almost everyone I've ever called 'family' have tried to kill me at least once. I'm not good having family. The only person I know will not break my heart is my girlfriend." Tears welled her eyes, but Lena didn't let them fall. "By now I don't know if I could endure another betrayal, but to be with Kara..." She looked into her eyes. "Kara makes me continue to believe in people. And I want to believe in you, I want to believe in you two." She sighed for the last time. "So... let's go slow on all this. I want to know you. I-I want... "

"It's allright, my sun and stars." Diana couldn't contain herself and caressed her cheek, receiving a shudder. "I understand that you want to protect your heart from being hurt again. And I admire your courage to give Artemis and me a chance." Lena was openly crying now. "Can I hug you?"

"Yes."

Diana didn't release her in thirty-two minutes.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **8:34 AM**

 ** _*Riiiiiiiing*_**

 _No one should be awakened by the sound of a cell phone._

 ** _*Riiiiiiiiing*_**

Luckily for Kara, this time the cell phone was on the bedside table. The Kryptonian forced herself to reach out and take it. Opening her eyes, she saw who was calling. _Please Rao, not Sna- It's Alex._

Kara accepted the call.

"Morning, Alex! Is not it a little early for-? "

" _Kara, you must come to my room now."_

Supergirl got up from the bed immediately, flying fast to the chair where she had left her clothes the night before.

"What happened? Is Maggie all right? Are yo-?"

" _The photographs are gone, Kara."_ Alex cursed. " _And if you don't find them with your x-rays, it means we've had an intruder."_

* * *

 **Sleep? What is that? Since I started this fic I only sleep four hours per day... zzzzzz...**


	13. The Found Princess

**Thanks for your support! If you took the time to leave a review I would appreciate it a lot. (ThankYou, (GRACIAS) tara loca,** **Synergy , & The Guest :D** **)** **I will keep trying to update every day :)**

* * *

 **Third Act**

 **Where Lena has identity problems, even stranger dreams, a Super girlfriend and two Wonderful mothers, and tries to find some answers.**

 **Not to mention that there is something stalking from the shadows.**

* * *

 **The Dangerously Frustrated Detective**

 **9:23 AM**

Maggie Sawyer let out a big sigh as she finally entered her apartment _. How can it be possible that absolutely nothing seems different?_ The walls were still yellow, Alex's shoes were still by the door, the light bill was still on the table, her paperwork was still unfinished...

She dropped her jacket to the floor unceremoniously. Maggie Sawyer stood in the middle of the living room of her home, watching it as if it were a strange and new place, a place that housed monsters beyond imagination.

And then she started to turn her home upside down.

She removed all the pots from the cabinet, checking them one by one. The couch cushions almost broke a lamp when she tossed them away. She removed Alex and Kara's photograph from the wall. She checked each and every garment from her wardrobe. The carpet finished on the table, the curtains were wrinkled in a corner. She was taking the fruits out from the refrigerator when Alex burst into the apartment, momentarily stunned by the hurricane around her.

"Maggie, what the-?!"

"I still have to check in the bathroom. Are you going to help me or what?"

"Maggie!" Alex stepped between her and a large bowl of noodles. "Maggie..." Alex sighed to calm down. "What is all this?"

"I'm looking for hidden microphones." Since it seemed like Alex was not going to move from the refrigerator, Maggie turned her attention to the garbage disposal.

"Maggie..."

"There could also be cameras, sensors, or even a bomb!"

"Maggie!" Alex took her girlfriend softly but firmly from the shoulders. "Babe, there is nothing in our apartment."

"And how do you know!? Someone was less than two inches from us last night and not even you noticed! How do you know nobody was here too?!"

"Because I'm a secret agent." Alex pulled a small triangular transmitter from her pocket. "If there were cameras or microphones hidden in our home, this thing would start to vibrate. J'onn is very paranoid about safety."

Maggie watched the little triangle suspiciously. Finally, she sighed and nodded.

"Believe me, I'm as furious as you." Alex gritted her teeth. "I'm so furious I can barely contain myself. Last night someone could have killed us, and I couldn't have done anything." She put both hands on her shoulders. "Whoever it was, it's out there, lurking, and we don't even know why." She squeezed her shoulder. Maggie could see her desire to hit something ( _like mine_ ). "We'll reach the end of all this. We'll find that asshole. We're going to make he pay for make us feel helpless. But now I need you not to fall into paranoia, please."

Maggie sighed and leaned her back against the messy countertop. She kept her eyes closed for five seconds, counted to ten, and when she opened her eyes she left the kitchen. She went to where she had left her jacket on the floor, put it on, and went to the door.

"Where are you going?"

"To work." She responded with her hand on the doorknob. "If I'm lucky, I'll vent my fury with some small-time offender." She made the effort to smile at her girlfriend, but failed. "And then I'll stop by L-Corp. I have to talk to Lena." _Please, Alex, don't look at me like that, I'm fine._ "Bye."

Maggie left her apartment, hurrying to work. Only her tightly pressed lips were proof of her anger.

 _If they think that I'll give up, they are very wrong._

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **9:47 AM**

Kara had never formed a clear opinion about Jess. She was not going to deny that there was a slight animosity towards her girlfriend's secretary, with whom Lena spent countless hours working. Sometimes, more than sleeping. But as Jess led them to their new apartment, Kara could only feel gratitude to that little woman for saving them from sleeping in a hotel that night.

"Of course, if you don't like it I can look for another one." Jess said as she looked in her pocket for the new apartment's keys. "I thought this apartment was better suited to what you asked for, Miss Luthor. It has large windows, is in the center of the city, is spacious..."

The door finally opened and Kara was astonished.

The place was beautiful, roomy, and bright. Large windows led to a balcony where some plants sunbathed. The kitchen was to the right, behind a bar with red seats. The walls were painted white and silver gray. A corridor on the left led to what Kara supposed were the bedrooms. The lobby had three large peach-colored couchs, around a small black tea table. A plasma screen TV was hanging on the wall in front.

 _This place must cost a fortune!_

"Also, it's at the same distance from L-Corp as your job, Ms. Danvers. I have taken the liberty of buying some general provisions for the refrigerator. I've also begun to replace your wardrobe, Miss Luthor, since all the previous one... burned."

Lena was still watching the screen of her cell phone, as she had been doing since she woke up. Jess focused her attention only on Kara.

"Your laptop is still at the technician, Ms. Danvers. It looks like he can fix it, but it will take some time."

"It's wonderful, Jess." Kara said to the secretary. _Thanks to Rao_. "Thank you for doing so much in such a short time."

"Well, it's my job." Jess smiled a little and looked down at her hands. "All the details about the apartment are in those papers on the table, Miss Luthor."

"...Mmm." Lena murmured.

Kara saw Jess puzzled for a second.

"Should I wait for you in your office today, Miss Luthor?"

Lena did not respond, still staring at her cell phone.

"Lena." Kara called softly.

Her girlfriend blinked and turned her attention to her interlocutors.

"Sorry, what?"

"If you're going to work today, Miss Luthor." Jess asked with a professional smile.

"Yes, I'll do it. There's certainly a lot of paperwork I need to catch up with." Her mouth twitched in disgust. "You go ahead and wait for me in the car, Jess. After all you've done, the least I can do is take you to work."

Kara watched as Jess blushed at the recognition, then nodded and walked out the door.

"So..." Kara began when they were alone. "You like?"

Her girlfriend looked around her with critical eyes. Her eyes lingered for a long time on the window. _I really should do something to help her with her vertigo._

"I guess it's fine."

"I know it's not the same as the other apartment, but..."

"Kara." Lena smiled softly. "It's fine, seriously."

Kara let out a long sigh and sat down on the couch. _Everything smells like new. I don't like the smell of new... However, what other option do you have? Your old apartment is made ashes, Kara._ She felt Lena sit beside her and wrapped her arms around her in a hug.

"What's wrong?"

Kara rested her head on her shoulder. "I'm worried." She sighed. "Very worried. And angry. Last night they could have hurt Alex and I wouldn't even have known. If something happens to Alex..."

Kara refused to finish the idea. Lena began to trace reassuring circles on her shoulder.

"Everything will be fine." Lena kissed her forehead.

"You don't really believe that." She looked at her. "You're too clever to believe that everything will be easily solved."

"I never said anything about an easy solution." Lena leaned her head into her girlfriend's. "Everything is far from easy at the moment. More when there looks like somebody's been... spying on us. But I remind you that it was you who taught me to have hope."

Kara sighed and her lips curved into a small smile. Her right hand advanced to the neck of her girlfriend, where she caressed the medallion's chain that was under her clothes.

"You should not have it on." Kara whispered. "You should have this hidden in a strongbox or something. This thing isn't safe."

"It's safe with me."

"Lena…"

"I won't lose sight of it, Kara." her girlfriend said seriously. "We don't have the photos anymore. This is our only clue and we can't lose it too." Lena hugged her gently and kissed her cheek and forehead. "I must go to work. See you later."

Lena got up and headed for the door. Before she left, Kara stopped her.

"Lena, what were you looking at on your cell phone?"

The brunette blushed a little. "The news." She shrugged. "Jess didn't exaggerate when she said that the media had gone crazy... Well, at least they have already stopped talking about my possible complicity with Lillian."

 _I knew this was going to happen, it looks like we'll have to deal with paparazzis for a while._ Kara smiled resignedly. Lena stepped out of the new apartment, her eyes not separating from Kara's until they disappeared down the hall.

The blonde sighed and got up from the couch to change her clothes. It hurt in the depths of her soul the absence of her laptop. _I hope I can get it back soon. I don't know how much longer I can hide it from Lena._

Kara Zor-El left her new home moving at super speed. When she arrived CatCo, she took her time to check the news on her cell phone as she climbed the elevator.

 _'Lena Luthor's Secret Heritage' 'Shocking Revelations on Wonder Woman's Return' 'The Wonderful Biological Mother of the Luthor Heiress'. Damn it, there are even pictures comparing their faces._

At that moment her phone began to vibrate. The screen lit up with Cat's name. Kara sighed deeply. _This time I can't refuse the call._

"Cat?"

 _"Well, well, I see you've finally decided to answer the phone."_

"I know! I'm sorry! I'm really sorry, Cat! The last few days have been crazy a-and I didn't want to ignore you but I was in the middle of a very emotional conversation and Lena needed me and Artemis needed a hug and I-I... "

 _"Kara."_

"Yes?"

 _"Shut up."_

"Okay."

 _"Now listen to me very carefully, because I just fired my pathetic excuse for an assistant and my patience goes down with the simple thought that I have to get a new one."_ Cat sighed dramatically. _"Get me an interview with Luthor."_

"What?" Kara could swear that her heart skipped an inch in her chest. "What? Cat, no, I can't- "

 _"You're thinking like a girlfriend and not a journalist, Kiera._ " Cat's voice sounded lower. _"Believe me, I understand it's personal, but if you open your eyes you will realize it's for the best."_

"Cat, I don't understand- how can you-?"

 _"Have not you seen the news?"_ Interrupted Cat _. "Where have you been these two days there's no internet? This is a massive explosion, Kara. Like it has not been since Clinton and his iconic phrase 'I did not have sexual relations with that woman'. This is not going away. The media are not going to leave the Luthor girl alone until she says something."_

"I know." Kara ran her hand through her hair. "Believe me, Cat, I know. I know they won't leave us alone."

 _"Until they have what they want: an answer."_ Kara heard Cat take a deep breath. _"Would you like her to be interviewed by a stranger, Kiera?"_

"I can interview her. I can-"

 _"You're her girlfriend, you know you're not a reliable source."_

"Cat..."

 _"It's me or Snapper."_ Cat finished. _"I will be in the city tomorrow. Carter and I have been away from home for too long."_

Cat hung up the communication the moment the elevator stopped. Kara wanted to melt something, anything.

"Ponytail!"

 _It seems like this won't be a good day._

* * *

 **Diana Prince**

 **9:50 AM**

Walking down the hall, Diana felt a pang of pain rise up her leg, like a Hydra's sting. The pain was sudden and she almost tripped. Mr. Hammond, owner and manager of the hotel, approached quickly and prevented her from falling on time. He was a smart, kind, potbellied man with a white beard. Diana enjoyed conversing with him.

"Careful, Ms Prince." Mr. Hammond smiled at her. "That could have been a bad fall."

"Thank you, Mr. Hammond."

"Call me John, please."

Diana noticed the striking colorful dinosaur shirt worn by the old man.

"Pretty shirt."

John Hammond laughed. "I sell them in the gift shop of my theme park."

"Someday I should visit it." Diana smiled and went on her way.

The undercover Amazon reached the elevator, gently supporting her foot when walking _. I can't believe that the greatest odyssey of my last years has been to go and get the newspaper_. _I have to keep training in my skills with the 'internet'._ She got off the elevator and walked slowly to her room. _We're not going back to New York, so we'll have to start looking for a apartment._ Diana sighed deeply. _And I need a job other than to beat dangerous monsters._

She opened the door of the room and entered. Diana opened the newspaper on the kitchen table, and then sitting down to read it. ' _National Tribune: The Lost Princess of Themyscira'._ Below was a photograph of Lena sitting in the street, covering herself from flashes of the cameras while Alex Danvers pushed a cameraman. Diana pushed the newspaper aside. _It won't tell me anything I don't already know._

The Amazon took off the glasses she did not need and rubbed her eyes. When she opened them, she caught a glimmer of light on the edge of the table. Looking up, the brunette saw that it came from the reflection of the sun on Artemis' knife. Her wife was sitting in front of the window, being illuminated by the sun, playing with a knife in her hands. The sun reflected thousands of colors in her red hair, and Diana would have enjoyed the view if it were not because **_Artemis_** was sitting **_quietly_** and that always meant **_problems, many problems._**

 _Very well, Diana. Take a deep breath... Hera, give me strength._

The princess got up from the table and walked to the couch. When she reached Artemis, she sat gently beside her and wrapped her arms around her. The redhead seemed to return to reality and smiled a little.

"Good morning, Princess." She said. "How is your leg?"

 _Is not she angry? What's wrong with her?_

"My leg is fine, it hardly hurts." Diana sat on her lap, still wrapped in the embrace. "Is something wrong, Missy? Are you nervous about the DEO?"

"I'm totally calm about that, trust me." Long nails began to caress in her black hair.

"Then what's wrong? You've been quiet since yesterday."

Her whole body filled with tension, as if she were about to fight somebody.

"I had a conversation with Kara the Journalist."

"Oh, Her-! Is Lena alright?!"

"It's not about Lena, it's about Bana-Mighdall." Artemis looked at her. "About my sisters. How did they manage to circumvent the surveillance of the city to take Lena out? How could they have entered Bana-Mighdall without being seen?"

 _Well, I had not thought of that._ "I've seen all sorts of powers in my life, love. It would not be impossible."

"Kidnapping a child in a city full of Amazons?" Artemis pursed her lips. "In complete silence? You know Lena didn't like strangers. She would have cried, screamed, or something. There are too many details to take into account. It can't be a coincidence or an accident."

"Missy, what are you saying?"

"I think one of my sisters betrayed us."

Diana let out an incredulous laugh. The idea was as absurd as it was impossible. A traitor among their sisters? The first moral value of an Amazon was courage in combat, and the second was loyalty to their sisters and Queen. Perhaps Bana-Mighdall and Themyscira had multiple differences, but in that they were firmly the same. _The girl must be making a mistake._

But Artemis did not seem to think so.

"Missy ..." Diana had the urge to rub her shoulder, but she restrained herself. "Love, it's more likely that an invisible thief has escaped through the mountains than an Amazon has committed treason. Why would they risk the wrath of the Goddesses?"

Artemis only looked at her for a long time, until Diana realized what her green eyes wanted to say.

"The same thing you thought of Luthor."

 _Auch._

"It's not the same." Diana felt her face harden. "We're talking about Amazons, not about that traitor."

"We're talking about Banas, not your sisters." Artemis looked strangely calm. "I know them better than you. I'm one of them, remember? We haven't been blessed with the perfection of your gods, Diana. We're mortal: we are born, we grow, we die, and we can fall into dishonor. Just because I'm immortal now doesn't mean I've forgotten where I came from."

"I never said you did."

"I know... But sometimes you forget it." Artemis rubbed her shoulder. "Not all people are loyal to death like you, Diana. Neither people nor Amazons, much less the Banas. Tartarus, do you forget what I told you the day I met you?"

"You were fourteen, weren't you? You were so cute..."

"What?" Artemis blushed. "No! I meant The Contest... And I wasn't cute, I was fierce and dangerous."

"And adorable. I had not seen a child in three hundred years. I wanted to hug you right away."

"Stop, Diana, you're getting creepy... Remember what I told you in The Contest?"

Diana tried to remember the moment, despite not being one of her favorites. "Something about envy."

"My exact words were 'Your stupidity is so great that it prevents your eyes from seeing the envy you awaken in people'." She shrugged. "At that moment I said it because I was nervous about the last event. But I meant it. Envy... there is no more deadly venom than envy mixed with pain. It's capable of destroying any heart, even that of an Amazon."

Diana watched her wife come out of her grip and rise from the couch. Artemis kissed her on the forehead and took one of her war axes. _I don't understand how they haven't discovered her already. Where do she hide her weapons?_

"Where are you going?"

"I'll be the nanny for the Martian's children tomorrow." Artemis put a dagger in her belt. "I have to practice more. And better keep looking for a job, Diana, I don't think you like being a housewife."

* * *

 **Only Lena for Now**

 **11:36 AM**

If she had to be totally honest with herself, Lena had been expecting a hecatomb when she entered her building. She had been waiting for chaos and disorder. She had been waiting for questions in droves, glances sideways, whispers behind her, the well-known hostility.

What she got was a clap as soon as she entered through the door.

And it was so obscenely absurd that for a moment she thought they had been mistaken of building. Only Jess's strange, bright smile could convince her that it was not some kind of hallucination caused by stress.

So Lena Luthor walked completely bewildered in that gallery of smiles that seemed sincere. She could not see her own face, she hoped she did not look as uncomfortable as she felt. Lena was adept at dealing with mistrust and resentment, but she had no idea what to do with the support of so many people. _How pathetic does that sound? I can't believe it._

But it was not until Masrani gave her the report of the meeting with the Japanese that Lena's day got really bizarre.

"They bought the double?" She asked, doubting that she had heard correctly.

"And I made them pay 15% more than planned." The Indian man's smile could split his face in two. "You can see all the details in the file."

Lena did, and had to stifle the urge to bite her lip. Yagami-sama and the Yotsuba corporation had signed a two-year contract instead of one, ( _and yes, there it is, they will pay 15% more_ ). Lena's brain simply could not process what had happened to her company in her absence.

"Simon, don't get me wrong, this is a very good thing, but totally unexpected. How did you get it?"

Simon Masrani smiled and nodded.

"Actually I didn't, it was you."

 _All right, what the fuck is he talking about?_

Before her perplexed gaze, Masrani explained himself. "Lena, you know better than anyone that your private life has repercussions on your company... And we've gone from being _'Lex Luthor's sister-Corp_ ' to _'Wonder Woman's daughter-Corp'_ in less than a weekend." He held out his arms. "I will not ask if it's true or not, but I hope it's because the shares doesn't stop increasing."

Lena looked at her vice-president as if he had grown a second head. _As always, people just look at the name. Is that why I was so well received a few hours ago?... This has to be a joke._ She took a deep breath and re-entered her business-woman mode.

"How much have the shares increased?"

"During this conversation? I couldn't tell you, I put a whole team working on it. But if we continue like this, we could buy Coca-Cola by the end of the week."

 _Oh dear God._

"Your image has also improved a lot." Masrani continued. "Not just because of your... discovery, but also because you faced that fire alien to help Supergirl."

"Simon, that wouldn't have even come out in the newspaper had it not been for what happened next." Lena pursed her lips slightly. "When I stopped my own mother so that she didn't exterminate the aliens, I just got suspicions."

"Well, at the time you weren't the lost daughter of the most beloved superhero of all time."

 _I know he's right, but would I be unprofessional if I throw my vice-president out the window?_

Lena smiled politely. "I will never be able to consider my private life of public interest, Simon. However, I'm glad that something good came out from my very strange weekend. L-Corp will benefit greatly from this good streak if we use it to invest in the foreign market."

"I propose Scotland." Masrani smiled and opened his briefcase to look for some documents. "InGen isn't going through a good time. I estimate that them have two months left before declaring themself on bankruptcy. If we buy the company... "

"...Our laboratories could develop cures for certain rare diseases." Lena liked the idea. "And I've always liked Scotland."

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **4:45 PM**

 _*I need to talk you, are you available?*_

 ** _*I'm at work, is it urgent?*_**

 _*It's about our little adventure and I don't think I can wait, sorry.*_

 ** _*Come before 5PM and tell Jess that you are Christina Aguilera.*_**

 _*What the heck, Luthor?*_

 ** _*I have to have fun somehow. And you shouldn't complain, you're stealing my work time.*_**

Repressing her desire to write furious messages to the brunette, Maggie put her phone in her pocket. _Why do she have to be annoying when she's angry? Why can't she be grumpy like normal people?_ She left her car in L-Corp's parking lot and walked to the building. She could not help looking up, wondering how many secrets were hidden in the history of those company, and how many of them Lena was aware of.

After giving the false name to Jess ( _at least it's not 'Ariana Grande_ ') Maggie was taken to Lena's office. She had never been there, and found it pretty but perhaps too bright. Lena was reading some files behind her desk. _She is tense, although she knows how to hide it well._

"Here's Ms Aguilera, Ms Luthor. Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"Yes, Jess." Lena replied, rising from her chair. "Make an appointment with my hairdresser, as soon as possible. I can't have my hair tied up forever."

 _Well, at least the tamaranean just ruined your hair and not your head, you could see it from that point of view._

Once they were alone, Maggie sat down in front of Lena at her desk and took one of the sweets from the candy jar.

"Are you okay?" Lena asked.

Maggie bit her cheek. "I can't stop thinking about the photos." Maggie looked into her eyes, drumming her fingers. "You have the medallion on, I can see it from here."

Lena's eyes flashed. "It's all we have. I'll not risk losing it."

"Don't you have a safe place to store it?"

"In a world where someone walked twenty centimeters near Alex and she didn't wake up, there are no safe places." Lena looked down at her hands. "What happened to the book?"

"Alex has given it to J'onn." Maggie leaned back in the seat. "And I don't understand..." She stared at her. "They took the photographs but didn't touch the book. It has no logic, no, and you know I don't like to ignore things."

"That's why you're a good detective, Maggie." Lena shrugged.

Maggie smiled a little. "I've been thinking about what we should do now. If your intentions are to go ahead and try to discover something, of course."

"At no time were others." Lena leaned her face into her right hand.

"Lillian's crimes thirty years ago." Maggie bowed. "All that is happening now is the effect of something that happened at that moment. According to Diana, Lillian was behind something as serious as stealing people's organs for months... And then she stopped just like that? No, no way." Maggie took another candy. "Damn it, Lena, I don't even know what happened, but it was a big deal. And that something caused you to be kidnapped and Lutessa Luthor disappear... So, I came to ask for your permission to investigate LuthorCorp's old files."

"You don't need my permission, Maggie." Lena rubbed her eyes. The edge of the medallion gleamed briefly. "I was going to ask you for help anyway."


	14. The Adventures of Wonder Girl

**Thanks for your support! If you took the time to leave a review I would appreciate it a lot. (ThankYou, (GRACIAS) Harukichiru,** ** & TheoMoose :D** **)** **:)**

 **The song in Kara's scene is Candyman of Christina Aguilera**

* * *

 **Only Lena for Now**

 **7:30 AM**

It happened after Alex ate her second pancake. Lena was watching her omelette as if it hid all the secrets of the universe, while Maggie and Winn talked about how to construct an picture of an adult person from their childhood photos. The new apartment received the first visit of their friends, but Lena was not in the best mood that morning. So she kept silent, thinking of Lillian, her mothers, her company... Until Kara dropped the bomb.

Lena blinked a couple of times, her eyebrows arched, her teeth tightened...

"What did you say, Kara?"

Her girlfriend giggled nervously and her eye began to shake. "Cat returns to the city today. I'll pick her up at the airport, um, you know, not that she needs it but..."

 _AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!_

"...besides I haven't seen Carter for a long time and..."

 _OH GOD NO! NOO!_

"...and I think it's a good gesture to accompany them to their house and..."

 _NO! IT'S NOT A GOOD GESTURE! I DON'T WANT YOU TO FUCKING GO!_

"...and basically just that."

 _FUCK, KARA, NO! NOOO!_

"Lena, your lip is shaking."

"It's wonderful that Cat comes back, Puppy." Lena smiled. "I know how much she means to you. I hope you have a lot of fun."

 _Why do you hate me, God?_

Lena looked at Alex, who was holding back her laughter, doing her best to look innocent. _I bet you wouldn't smile that way if Kate Kane decided to visit the city._ Maggie shook her head. Winn gave her a look of infinite pity.

 _Okay, Lena, this isn't a bad thing. Simply one of the most powerful woman in the world, with whom your girlfriend shares a deep and sincere friendship, has decided to return to the city. This doesn't have to be a bad thing. I've faced worse than Cat Grant... I can pretend I'm sick, Kara would have to stay to take care of me and not go to the airport._ She had never fully understood Kara's relationship with her former boss, but she refused to be a jealous girlfriend. Lena trusted Kara. _But can you trust Cat?_

"As I was saying ..." Winn continued. "The paparazzis had me cornered, so I had to escape through the ventilation duct. I haven't had such a wild weekend since my graduation." Lena looked at him. "Okay, I spent that weekend playing Minecraft, but that doesn't mean it wasn't exciting!"

"Minecraft?" Alex raised an eyebrow. "Nerd."

"Sinner." Lena said.

"I don't know you." Maggie pushed her chair away.

"I never understood that game. Alex never let me play it."

"Because I love you." Alex squeezed her younger sister's cheek.

"Leaving aside my taste for video games..." Winn looked at Lena. "How are you? For real."

Lena smiled and shrugged. She felt Kara's hand gently squeeze hers. "I'm... confused." She moved her omelette with her fork. "But now I understand many things that I didn't understand before."

"Things like...?" Maggie asked with interest shining in her eyes, as she bit a toast.

"Things Lillian used to do." Lena caressed Kara's knuckles. "She hated when someone mentioned Wonder Woman in her presence. Lex used to think it was out of spite or something." The memory of her brother made her heart feel heavier. "There was a time when Lex and I were trying to climb the big tree in our garden. Lex used to climb well, but I was faster than him and I got to the top first. He smiled and said _'You're like an amazon'_. None of us saw that Lillian had entered the garden." Lena pursed her lips. "She didn't talk to Lex for two days, and he's the only one she loves in the world."

Winn reached out and gently squeezed her arm.

"You know you can count with us, do you?"

"Yeah, I know." Lena's heart felt lighter.

"However..." Winn paused dramatically. "Do you think your mother would let me make her a new suit? Or take a couple of selfies with her? If so, I would only lack Batwoman to complete my... "

Lena threw a breadcrumb at him.

"Ouch! My eye! With a simple 'no' would have been enough, Wonder Girl!"

 ** _*Nock Nock Nock*_**

The five people looked at the door.

"Who's there, Kara? Tell me it's not another paparazzi."

Kara Zor-El took off her glasses and checked the door. Her lips quirked into a smile.

"It's for you, Lena." Kara bit her potsticker.

Lena frowned and got up from the table. When she opened the door, she was momentarily blinded by the brightness of Diana's smile.

"Good morning, honey." Wonder Woman said from behind all the boxes in her arms. "I brought fruit for you to have breakfast. I don't know if you still like strawberries, so I brought you peaches, pears, apples, bananas, blueberries... A healthy breakfast is important to face the daily battles."

A stunned Lena looked confused at Artemis.

"Don't look at me, I told her."

At that moment, Winn decided to look up and see who was at the door. The technician let out a shout of emotion no very masculine.

"Oh, my God! **_GOD!_** Lena, what are you doing standing there doing nothing!? Let them pass **_now!_**!"

Reacting, Lena had the two Amazons come in. Diana seemed to radiate happiness as she left the boxes of fruit in the kitchen. _It's a lucky that Kara eats a lot_. Artemis squeezed her shoulder to express her commiseration, and then sat down at the table next to Alex. _Very well, Lena, calm down, nothing happens._

Diana greeted them all, causing Winn to almost faint. When she sat next to Lena, her attention fell on Kara.

"You must be Kara." Diana held out her hand. "Nice to meet you."

Her girlfriend smiled. "You too! I see where Lena got her beauty... Umm, I didn't mean to imply that Artemis isn't beautiful, she's very beautiful! Like a rose with sharp thorns! I-I mean…"

Lena covered her face with her hands.

"I was yearning to meet the person who owns Lena's heart." Diana interrupted Kara's babbling. "Tell me about yourself, Kara."

"Umm, well, I..." Lena saw Winn trying to hold his laughter. "I-I'm normal. Yes, I'm a totally normal person! I'm Alex's sister, umm, I'm a journalist, and... um, I used to work for Cat Grant."

"Cat Grant?" Diana raised an eyebrow. "She and I talked a few days ago."

 _Good, at least Diana knows her. Surely she was harassed by Cat to get that interview. She won't like to know that she has returned to the city._

"...I was lucky to have found her. Rarely in my life have I meet a woman more wonderful than Cat Grant."

"Of course!" Kara smiled. "Ms. Grant seems cold and vain, but she actually has one of the greatest hearts I've ever seen."

"Had it not been for her, I would never have come to National City or found my sun and stars..."

"Cat is an incredible person."

"Undoubtedly."

"Yeah... Um, Lena? Are you okay? Why are you so red?"

"Moving on..." Alex decided to help, as Lena seemed about to kill someone. "I bet you have many interesting stories to share. Umm, Artemis, is it true that you have Hermes' flying sandals?"

"I used to have them." the redhead answered, peeling an apple with her dagger. "But Lena ruined them with her bites when her teeth started to come out. And when she finished with them, she took off all her clothes and danced around to honor the 'Goddess of frayed sandals'."

And that was the closest Lena Luthor was to committing a mass murder in her entire life.

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **8:15 AM**

The passengers began to descend from the plane. She looked from the distance, lost in the colors of their clothes and the sound of their voices. Cat did not immediately descend as she thought she would. Fearing that she had made a mistake, Kara Zor-El lowered her glasses a little to use her x-ray vision. She could hear Cat and Carter's heartbeats, still sitting in their seats, talking about something.

Kara waited a few more minutes until she finally saw Cat and Carter get off the plane. It was a bit frustrating, because she wanted to be angry with Cat for being forced to get her an interview with Lena, but when she saw the older woman walking towards her with two pairs of sunglasses on and three helpers carrying her luggage, Kara realized, not for the first time, that being angry with Cat Grant was not only difficult, it was impossible.

"Carter!"

"Kara!" A taller Carter than she remembered was the first to hug her. Kara lifted him in her arms.

"Okay, calm down you two, you will _-Ah!"_

It was more or less then when Kara lifted Cat in the air and started to spin.

"Kiera! Have you lost your mind!? Put me down!"

"Caaaaat! I missed you so much! Snapper is a great journalist and I've learned a lot from him but his soul's black and dark and..."

"Kiera!"

"...is not half as good as you and he doesn't bathe too much and...!"

 _"Kara."_

The Kryptonian stopped spinning, but refused to let her go.

"Okay, Kiera, I know you missed me and that Snapper isn't half as amazing as me, but you can't do those things in public. You're an adult, don't do that aga _\- Kara, are you crying?"_

Once in the limo, Carter did not stop talking about his school in New York. Apparently he had not made many friends there either, but his institute had a large library, of which 'he has already read it all', as he himself said.

"But you hate reading." she said.

"I don't hate reading, Kara." Carter replied rolling his eyes. "I hate reading poetry. I don't know, I just don't understand it. What exactly is the point?"

"I think it's to cause estrangement in the reader." Kara shrugged. "To make the words we use every day sound strange and new."

"That's what the songs are for. Mom, can you ask Dennis to turn on the radio?"

Cat looked up from her cell phone, and lowered the blackout window film.

"Mr. Nedry, turn on the radio." she ordered.

The driver ( _where did Cat get this guy? It looks like an elephant mucus_ ) turned on the radio and a pop song began to ring. Her face lit up as she recognized the song, and Carter smiled so broadly that Kara could see his uvula.

 _Candy man, Candy man_

 _Sweet, sugar, candy man!_

"Oh my- Carter, I love this song!"

"Me too!"

"Sing with me!"

"What? Kara, Carter, no, don't even... "

 _"I met him out for dinner on a Friday night!"_

 _"He really got me working up an appetite!"_

 _"He had tattoos up and down his arm!"_

 _"There's nothing more dangerous than a boy with charm!"_

Cat gave up and watched them dance in silence.

After Carter got tired of singing with Kara the entire 'Back to Basics' album, he put on his headphones and concentrated on his cell phone as a normal teenager. Kara was happy that Carter was well. The boy deserved it more than anyone, he was the sweetest kid Kara had ever met and...

"Weren't you angry?" Cat asked with her eyes on her cellphone. "I think I detected a hint of hostility in your voice yesterday."

Kara shrugged. "Of course I'm angry, but that doesn't mean I'm not happy to see you." She sighed. "It's just that I don't want anything to bother Lena. After Lillian... They hated each other, and yet it was so _hard_ for her. And then the press began to attack her... it didn't help exactly."

"A powerful woman with a difficult mother. The Luthor girl don't have it easy, but who do?" Cat smiled a little. "You're a good girlfriend, Kara. Leonor will be fine, stop worrying so much."

"Um, it's Le-"

"Make her assistant call me to set the details of the interview. I haven't found yet a new one."

"Umm... Yeah, that's what I wanted to talk to you about, she'll be a little busy for now, maybe..."

"You haven't told her about the interview yet, have you?"

"No."

Cat put on her dark glasses again, both of them. "Tick Tock, Kiera. The time runs and my schedule doesn't get thinner, so chop chop. "

Kara swallowed hard.

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **9:03 A.M**

"Abandon all hope, ye who enter here."

 _Okay, that's not the most positive way to start._

Artemis's footsteps echoed in the room full of soldiers. The redhead smiled like the cat that ate the canary, looking at them all like a spider would look at a trapped fly. Alex had to make an effort to remember that a few hours ago that same woman had been by her side, placidly relating how Lena used to dance naked around her frayed sandals. J'onn was standing in a corner, whispering to Diana and watching them with quiet eyes. Their gazes met and Alex raised an eyebrow, but the Martian just shrugged. _It looks like we're at her mercy._

"I see that all of you are well-formed soldiers." Artemis examined a pair of men in the front row. "Yes, with the well developed muscles, straight posture, and serious face of soldiers." She continued her way, watching them all in the eye. "Do you know what a soldier's job is?" She stopped. "Die." Her eyes, serious now, met Alex's. "The work of a warrior, on the contrary, is to win wars."

She shook a soldier, holding his shirt. "Do you consider yourself a warrior, child?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"No, no." She pushed him. "I'll see whether it's true or not. Why do you fight?"

"For my country."

"For your country..." Artemis smiled. "That's the answer a soldier would give. But who is your country?" She approached intimidatingly. "If one of your compatriots kills someone you love, that person is your country?" She looked at him with disdain. "If a foreigner saves your life, is not he your country?"

Artemis walked again and stopped abruptly within two inches of Grady. "And you, why do you fight?"

"Because it's my duty." he said with firm voice. _But his body language screams that he's nervous._

Artemis raised her eyebrows and nodded. "Your duty, eh? What's your duty?"

"To catch the aliens that could hurt innocent people."

"Well, what a surprise! You're not a soldier, you're a cop." Artemis smirked. "They are worth a little more, they die a little earlier."

Her furious steps echoed on the walls.

"Is not there a single warrior among you all?" She asked frowning, until her eyes fell on Alex.

As she knew they would eventually do.

"And you, Agent Danvers?" Her green eyes glowed for a second. "Why do you fight?"

 _I don't even have to think that question._

"For love." _Kara. Maggie_. "I joined the DEO to protect those I love from those who can harm them." _J'onn. My mother. Even Winn and Lena, those hopeless nerds._

"And how's it going with that?"

"I'd say pretty well, though those who got in my way couldn't say the same." Alex smiled slightly and shrugged.

The amazon's eyes gleamed like a pair of fireflies in a blood moon.

"Looks like we do have a warrior between us after all."

Smiling with malice, the Amazon looked at them all. Her whole presence irradiated danger.

"The reason the warrior dies is love." Her face hardened. "The reason he kills is love. Neither homeland, nor duty, nor any of those stupidities will be in your mind when you face a battle in which you could lose your life. Only the faces of the people with whom you want to return."

"A warrior doesn't fight to die, a warrior fights to win, and return home. I'm going to say this to you all once more, because I'll not say it again: 'Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.'

"I'll not have mercy on any of you." Artemis smiled. "I'm going to tear you apart, to each and every one of you. I'm going to make your bones ache and your muscles cry at night. I'll squeeze every drop of suffering I can get from your bodies. And I'm going to turn you into warriors capable of facing the worst monsters, without need for you to use those ridiculous toys that you call 'guns'."

"No guns?" Grady asked incredulously.

"If I take your gun, what's left? Your deplorable knowledge of hand-to-hand combat?" Artemis denied. "Typical of a soldier. No pathetic toys in this place. If you think you'll waste time, get out of my sight and don't waste **_my_** time."

"Those who remain will become warriors."

Alex felt the adrenaline rush through her body.

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **5:12 PM**

Maggie's smile was still big and beautiful. _Thanks Artemis, I still think you're an ass but at least you made me laugh a little._ The detective followed Lena through the dimly lit corridor in the subsoil of L-Corp. Occasionally, Maggie could see the red glow of a security camera.

She could barely distinguish Lena's long legs, she could only hear the furious sound of her high heels against the floor. To be honest, the brunette did not seem to be having a very good day. _First Kara 'Sunny' Danvers goes to pick Cat up to the airport, and then that story about the sandals... Yeah, I wouldn't want to be Lena at this time._ Maggie would not like the idea of Alex going to meet another woman at the airport.

Lena stopped at the last door of the hallway and slid her access card into the panel. A green light flashed for a second and the CEO opened the door. The lights went on immediately, painfully bright.

Maggie found herself in front of a room larger than her entire apartment. Innumerable shelves stretched across the place, where countless brown boxes piled up in piles, more than she had ever seen in her life, and she frequented the police files.

"And this is just National City." Lena said by her side. "Follow me."

Lena advanced to a slightly clearer area where a big computer was on a mahogany table. The machine emitted a constant buzz, and Maggie felt the warmth of it.

"I think this will be more useful to you." Lena was slightly flushed from the heat. "We're looking for something that happened in New York thirty years ago, before Lillian and Lionel settled in Metropolis. This computer has a copy of the files of all L-Corp computers, even those of Haiti."

"Are there things of thirty years ago?"

"If there aren't, we'll have to go to New York to check it in person." Lena pulled away from the machine. "And the New York archive is twice as big."

"Okay, we have to start somewhere."

The detective took off her jacket and left it on the table. _It seems like I'm gonna to get bored, okay, not everything can be kicking asses_. Maggie sat down and accessed the virtual file, beginning to look for the ones of 1987 and 1988.

"Do you need anything particularly?" Lena asked, her arms crossed. "I could send a couple of people to help you here."

"I don't need help, thank you."

"If you need anything, let me know."

"Would you buy me a couple of milkshakes and some donuts?"

"Of course not." Lena rolled her eyes. "I'm a busy woman, I'll send someone to do it."

Lena turned to leave. Halfway, Maggie stopped her.

"Forget the milkshakes. Better get me a carrot juice."

The detective thought she saw a grimace, but she was not sure.

* * *

 **I have noticed that Lena and Diana throw things all the time. Newspapers, stones, crutches, bread...**


	15. Paranoia

**Thanks for your support! If you took the time to leave a review I would appreciate it a lot. (ThankYou, (GRACIAS) Harukichiru,** **, Synergy, Ari & The Guest (I loved your idea but I had the scene written already when I received yor review D: ****)**

* * *

 _Lena had to run._

 _She did not know why, but she had to run, keep running, not look back, get to the well. It all depended on her being able to reach the well where Lionel used to sit and think._

 ** _You're not a Luthor._** _Lillian's voice said._

 _"And you're not my mother!" The brunette shouted at the darkness, her eyes unfocused and her teeth clenched._

 _She was about to reach the garden. It seemed five times darker than it had ever been, darker than the same nothing. Lena stumbled over one of the chairs, getting to her feet immediately, ignoring the pain in her hip._

 ** _You are not an Amazon_** _. Diana's voice was disappointed._

 _"But I'm brave." Lena grunted. "I don't need to be an Amazon, just be brave. I know you'll understand."_

 _Lena opened the garden door and the cold air hit her face. The well was close. Very close. She ran through Lex's flowers, ruining them irreparably. She tripped over a stone and rose again between curses. Her hands were dirty and aching, her knuckles bleeding, and a twinge of pain struck her like a bucket of cold water._

 ** _You aren't LENA!_** _A child's voice screamed from the depths of her memory._

 _"I'm sorry, Lutessa." A tear slid down her cheek. "But it wasn't my fault."_

 _In the moonlight, the water of the well shone in a greenish glow. The blond woman was with her back to her, her right hand was circling in the bright water. Lena let out a gasp to catch her breath._

 _"Kara."_

 _Her hand stopped._

 _"Kara, get away from there. You have to get away from the water."_

 _The blonde turned slowly. Lena felt the sweat sliding down her forehead._

 _"Kar-."_

 _It was Kara's face._

 _But she was not **Kara.**_

 _Lena could feel it._

 _"You're not Kara."_

 _The **thing** smiled._

 _"And you're not Lena."_

 _She lunged at her, needing less than a second to subdue her with her strength. The brunette did not have time to resist before being pushed into the frozen depths of the well. The last thing she saw were two incredibly blue eyes._

* * *

 _This time, Lena was aware of where she was._

 _She was in her crib, in her room in Themyscira. Once again, her body was too small to move at will. Her eyes were closed, but as a newborn, her nose and hearing was much more sensitive than that of an older person._

 _And that's why she knew there was someone else in the room._

 _"I could destroy you now." The hoarse voice whispered. "I could do it and no one would stop me. Diana is fucking her street rat right now. Neither of them could do anything if I decided to smash your head against the floor. Absolutely anything." The voice sighed. Lena started to twist, upset. "Your days are numbered anyway, 'princess'."_

 _She heard herself crying._

* * *

 **Supergirl**

 **3:47 AM**

Supergirl felt a slight headache when she entered through the window, where the half-ton cement block had struck her. _That alien was stronger than I expected._

It was easier to access the new apartment than the previous one, she had to admit it. Kara stifled a yawn and rubbed her eyes. _When was the last time I ate? Two or three hours ago? I hope there are still potsti-_

 _"Get away from me!"_

Kara almost broke the door to their bedroom. Lena was having a nightmare, tangled in the sheets and kicking in the air. Her heart was beating so fast it sounded like a buzz.

"Lena!"

Kara shook her girlfriend, who opened her eyes in horror and let out a choked cry. Lena woke up trembling, gripping the sheets so tightly that Kara thought she might tear them off.

"Kara."

"Easy, Lena." Supergirl knelt beside her. "It was just a nightmare. Whatever it was, it wasn't real, love. Just a bad dream." Kara began stroking her hair. "Just a bad dream."

"Two." Lena pulled the blonde, wrapping herself in her arms. "Two bad dreams." She bit her lip. "And she was there, i-inches from me. "

"Who is 'she'?" Kara asked softly, wrapping her in her arms.

"Oh, Kara, I don't know," her girlfriend said. "I don't know. I just know that she didn't want to kill me, she wanted... to destroy me."

 _Rao, why are you doing this to us?_

Kara took her face in her hands, caressing her sharp cheeks, kissing her eyes, her forehead, her nose, whatever her lips could found.

"Your girlfriend can lift a boat with her little finger, Lena." She kissed her lips. "I'll never let anyone hurt you." then kissed her neck. "Never." and then her hair. "I'll never allow it. Never."

For a moment, Supergirl thought she saw the golden medallion glow in the dark, but she was so worried that she told herself she must have imagined it.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **7:28 AM**

The fruits Diana had brought had not survived Kara a single day. However, the blueberry box was still full. She did not like them enough; on the contrary, Lena adored them.

Kara put a handful of blueberries in a bowl, and left it on the breakfast tray. _Okay... I have orange juice, pancakes, blueberries... The coffee isn't ready yet. I think it would be best if Lena drinks it after eat._

Kara picked up the breakfast tray and walked back to their bedroom. Lena was asleep on her back, hugging a pillow tightly. _How I wish I didn't have to wake her up. She's been under a lot of stress lately._ Kara wished Lena would just take a break, but what rest could she have if the paparazzi kept harassing them? _And I don't even want to think about that someone could be spying on us._ Kara clenched her fist.

The Kryptonian sat on the bed, gently stroking Lena's arm. Her heart rate quickened slightly and her eyes opened. Kara felt her heart lighten as she saw her girlfriend smile at her.

"Morning."

"Morning, Puppy." Lena said, sitting on the bed.

"How do you feel?"

Lena looked at her in confusion. "I feel good, in fact." The brunette yawned and stretched. "You brought me breakfast to bed? Ohh, Kara, you're the best girlfriend in the world! Thank you very much."

Lena took the plate of blueberries and began to eat them with a spoon. Kara blinked a couple of times, confused. After a couple of seconds, the brunette noticed that her girlfriend was not eating, and she looked up.

"Is something wrong, Kara?"

"Are you feeling all right?"

Her girlfriend raised her eyebrows. "I feel completely normal. Why do you ask?"

"F-For your nightmare." Kara laid her hand on her leg. "I thought maybe you'd be a little worried for your nightmares, and I brought you these blueberries."

"Nightmares?" Lena snorted. "Puppy, I'm so sorry to have scared you. It was just few cloudy dreams caused by stress. Honestly, I feel much better now." Lena took her hand.

"What about the intruder?"

"What intruder?"

"You said you were in your crib, and that t-there was an intruder there. Someone who wanted to destroy you."

Lena nodded and raised her eyebrows. "Forget about that, please. It was just a silly nightmare. Now I don't even remember it well."

"Lena, your dreams aren't just dreams." Kara felt like a madwoman talking to someone even crazier. "They are memories too, you forget?"

"Not this one." her girlfriend answered sweetly, but also firmly. "It was just a normal nightmare, nothing more."

"Are you sure?"

"I promise."

"Um, okay."

Lena got out of bed and began to remove her pajamas. Kara's gaze focused on her bare back, the little mole beneath her shoulder blade. Lena went to her closet to get her work clothes, finishing undressing on the way. Kara watched her as she pulled on a blue dress and combed her hair into a ponytail.

"You've been very quiet since yesterday, Puppy." Lena said, running her hand over the ruined part of her hair. "Is something wrong?"

 _Uh huh. Okay, be careful now._

"In fact... there's something I would like to talk to you about." Kara was suddenly very interested in the carpet.

"I hear you." Kara could smell how Lena applied perfume in her neck.

"Yesterday, when I was with Cat, she and I had a conversation." Kara tried to pick her words very carefully, watching her thumbs. "I told her about our problems with the paparazzis. Umm, she already knew, as always. "

"I think it's a bit exaggerated to say we have a 'problem' with the paparazzi." Lena said quietly.

"Um, Lena, yesterday they took pictures of you sipping tea in your office... on the top floor... through your window."

"Okay, someone used a super telescope. Is that really a 'problem'? I think it's rather an 'inconvenience'."

 _What's wrong with her today? She's acting very weird. Is it because she don't like Cat?_

"Whatever it's, Cat told me something, and as a journalist I think she's right." Kara got out of bed. "News gets old very fast. I don't think they will leave us completely alone if you give an interview, but the public interest would be reduced a bit. Maybe you should... try."

Lena was silent for a few seconds, staring at her own reflection. "You would do the interview?"

"It would be unprofessional because everyone knows we're in a relationship." Kara twisted the hem of her T-shirt. "Cat could do it..."

"No."

"...After all- No?"

"No." Her voice sounded slightly irritated. "No interviews." Her hands smoothed her skirt. "Do you think I look older in this dress?"

"Lena…"

"Puppy." Lena used her business-woman smile. "I really appreciate what Mrs. Grant is, or you think she's, trying to do. But that won't happen."

"Um, okay... I understand that you don't like Cat. And that's okay! Many people don't like her. And not everyone has to like everyone. But I really think she's right right now."

Lena frowned. _Uh uh, help, help!_ "If Ms. Grant told you to jump off a bridge, would you jump?"

"Umm, yes?"

Her eye twitched slightly. "I think I'm going to work early." Lena picked up her briefcase and walked to the door.

"But only because I can fly! Wait, Lena, don't..! "

 ** _PAMP!_**

"...go." Kara sighed and stared at the door. "Okay, that came out better than I thought."

* * *

 **Barely Lena**

 **2:40 PM**

A chill ran down her back as the hairdresser's cold hands touched her wet hair. In the mirror, the Thai man's yellow eyes narrowed, assessing the damage in Lena's hair.

"Of course I can fix it without cutting too much, and make you look fabulous in the process, love."

"How much do you have to cut, Magnus?" Lena asked.

"Just below your shoulders."

 _That's good, it won't be very noticeable. I can live with that._

"Well, start then, Magnus."

Mr. Bane took a pair of scissors and began to work. Lena kept her gaze locked on the mirror, still thinking about the conversation ( _it was a discussion, don't kid yourself_ ) she'd had with Kara in the morning. She could understand it from the logical point of view, sooner or later she would have to talk to the press. It was totally impossible that that did not happen.

But Lena felt a little tired of being logical.

 _I just want to be left alone._ Lena closed her eyes and sighed. _But reality isn't a fairy tale, Lena._

Opening her eyes, she watched in fascination as her black hair fell to the floor. Since she could remember, she had always had long hair, falling down her back like a waterfall. _New hair, new life. If it worked with Emma Watson can work with me too._

When Magnus was almost finished, Lena noticed that some people were piling up in the hairdresser's shop window. Most of them, with their cell phones pointing towards them. _Rather, pointing to me._

The Thai hairdresser frowned and turned to the counter, where a muscular black-haired guy sat.

"Alec, baby, can you take care of that?"

The black-haired guy got up and went to drive the people away. Lena looked away, wanting to prevent those cellphones from recording her face clearly.

"It's always the same with today's people." Magnus sighed, giving the last cuts. "Someday, I'll disguise myself as Sweeney Todd and chase them with a fake razor."

"It's good for your business that they see me here." Lena said.

"It's good for my business that the customer wants to come back." Magnus smiled mischievously. "You can go out the back door when I'm done."

Twenty minutes later, and safely behind a pair of dark glasses and a new hairstyle, Lena Luthor stepped out from behind the hairdresser and walked the twenty yards that separated her from her car. They had had to paint it again, but there was no trace of the vandalism suffered. Lena came in and took off her dark glasses; her eyes met her reflection in the mirror.

 _It's not very noticeable_. Her hand touched her hair. _If I tie my hair, nobody will notice anything._

Lena was about to start the car when she heard a soft knock on her window. _Arg, no! No more paparazzis!_ The brunette managed to distinguish a smile from behind the black glass, and a hand waving gently.

Lena frowned and lowered the window. There, a couple of inches away, was the woman with whom she had shared table at a coffe shop a thousand years ago, smiling sweetly at her.

"Are you hiding from someone, sweetie?"

"What?" Lena managed to ask from the confines of her confusion.

"Oh, right, I'm sorry." The woman took off her glasses and disheveled her hair a little. "It's me. I have created a secret identity to be able to go out into the street like a normal person. I should have done it long ago, honestly... Lena, honey, are you allright?"

 _Have I really fallen twice in the same trick? And I dare to believe that I'm smart?_

"Yes, I'm okay." Lena blinked a couple of times. "What are you doing here? Were you going somewhere?"

"I come from a job interview." Diana answered. "I was returning to the hotel, it's a lovely day to walk."

"I can take you, if you want." Lena offered.

Diana's blue eyes gleamed. "I would love to."

The Amazon warrior circled the car and got into through the passenger seat. Lena started the engine.

"Sweetie, you're forgetting your seat belt."

The younger brunette blushed slightly and pulled on her belt. She took a deep breath; pressing the clutch and then the accelerator.

She felt the tension grow in the silence, even though Diana seemed to feel nothing but tranquility. _Centuries to practice calmness_. Lena kept her eyes on the street, trying to find something to say.

"So, job interview?"

Diana nodded. "Or at least that's what I had the intention it was. But that museum had based their exhibits on erroneous data, and they didn't take very well for me to try to correct their mistakes."

Lena smiled a little. "That wasn't exactly subtle."

"You're right." Diana shrugged. "I have to be more careful. If they discover me, I would have to invent another secret identity. By the way, it's..."

"Diana Prince?" Lena raised her eyebrows and smiled.

Diana blinked. "Hera, how do you know?"

"Intuition." Lena looked at her briefly. "In my line of work it takes a lot of intuition."

"I figured." Diana smiled again.

"Where's Artemis? At the hotel?"

"Oh, no." Diana straightened in the seat. "Missy is at the DEO right now, I came alone." Diana rested her face on her hand. "It's a great relief for me."

"Relief?" Lena raised an eyebrow.

"The man's world has always been a fascinating and beautiful place for me, even with all its errors. And I've always been welcomed into it." Diana looked at her. "But for Artemis it was different the first time she came out. She hated it for a long time. And when we left Themyscira, I feared I was dragging her to something she didn't want, even though it was her idea. But it ended up being the best decision we could make."

Lena noticed that the Amazon had frowned slightly, with her gaze lost on the street _. But if you had came out before, you would have found me before... No, it wasn't their fault. Don't mess with them for having a bad day._ Diana seemed to want to say something, but she closed her mouth at the last moment. When she finally spoke, it was not what Lena expected.

"Did you ever wonder where your name came from?" Diana asked.

Lena had to slow down. The last thing she needed was to have a car accident because she was not paying enough attention.

"Everybody has ever wondered that. I've looked it up on Google." Lena made a mental note to remember to explain to Diana what Google was. "It means 'beauty as the sun'."

"It means that? It's very pretty."

"Didn't you know?"

"It has another meaning for Artemis and for me. Although at first I wanted to name you 'Athena'."

" _What?_ " Lena exclaimed incredulously. _"Why-?_ That name's _horrible_."

Diana rolled her eyes. "Artemis said the same thing. What's wrong with it? It's a beautiful name of a beautiful and intelligent Goddess, just like you."

"From now on..." Lena wondered if her life could be more stranger. "...Every time I'm having a bad day, I'll remember that my name could be 'Athena' and I'll feel better."

Diana laughed and rubbed her hands together. "Missy and I had different reasons to choose your name. For my part, it's from an old story that my mother used to tell me a long time ago." She smiled. "I forgot the details over time, but it was about a warrior who faced the Great Monster, a being more terrible than the Gods themselves, in the dawn of time. 'Lena' was her human name, her real name is unknown."

"The warrior defeated the monster?" The CEO parked next to the hotel, but focused her attention on the Amazon.

"No, Lena doesn't win. The Great Monster won in the end." Diana shrugged. "However, the story was beautiful, one of the earliest memories of my life. It's a confusing memory by the passage of time, but I wanted to share that feeling with you."

"What about Artemis?" Lena asked. "You said she also had a reason to choose my name."

"Right." Diana looked at her hands. "Her father's name was 'Len'. She loved him very much, even though in Bana-Mighdall men were considered little more than slaves. He died when she was eleven."

Lena was silent for a while, thinking of the new information she had just received.

"Sweetie, I love being here with you, but you don't have to work?"

Lena looked at the clock horrified, it was five minutes before the start of her next meeting. _Damn it._

"I'm late." Lena took her cell phone to text Masrani. "The good thing is I'm the boss, they can't start without me."

"Have a nice afternoon at work." Diana kissed her cheek before opening the door. Lena froze. "By the way, your new hairstyle is very beautiful."

Diana got out of the car.

"Diana, wait."

Lena saw the light shine in those blue eyes.

"Have... Have a nice afternoon, too."

The Amazon winked at her. "Believe me, I'm having it."

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **7:15 PM**

She ached muscles she did not know she had. _I have no idea how I'm still standing._

And she was so happy that she wanted to sing.

"No no NO!" Artemis shouted at Harper. "You're too slow! If that's the fastest you can attack, little boy, then stop wasting my time and go to level one! You'll be there until I decide you're ready for level two."

 _I can't believe that only sixteen of us are on level two._ Of which, to her happiness, Alex was part. At level one, the agents were busy preparing themselves physically. At level two, they learned the fighting skills.

"Stop." Artemis growled. "Those on level two can withdraw. The rest will stay until I say it."

Alex ignored the pain in her body and headed for the door.

"Stop complaining, worthless kids! Why don't any of you learn from Danvers!?"

Alex was excited for the compliment. _I bet it's not easy to please her._

Walking out of the DEO (or at least trying), Alex took her cell phone and called Maggie.

 ** _*Puun* *Puun* *Puun* *Puun* *-Clinck-*_**

 _"Hi Dan...vers."_

"Maggie?"

 _"Hey, babe. What's..."_ Alex heard a yawn. _"…up?"_

"Maggie, tell me you haven't spent all afternoon investigating at L-Corp."

 _"Of course not, I spent all afternoon investigating at home."_ Maggie sounded more asleep than awake. _"Winn managed to connect my laptop to the main L-Corp network. It's no longer necessary to come and go, at least. I have also brought a couple of boxes that I could investigate in..."_

 _Damn it._ Alex knew that it was important to investigate until finding a clue, but her girlfriend instinct told her that it was bad that Maggie became obsessed that way. _In movies, the obsessed detective always ends bad._

"I'll tell you something, what if I buy you a pizza and see how cute you look while you eat it? You need a break."

 _"Are you saying you won't eat pizza, Danvers? Are you sick or something?"_

"I'll have to eat totally and absolutely healthy for now. Part of the training."

 _"The Amazon is an ass."_

"What? Not at all. In fact, I think I like her." Alex laughed. "And you have to admit that now we know what to give Lena for Christmas: a pair of sandals."

Alex collided with a blond man carrying boxes. Her tired body screamed in pain. Between apologies, the DEO agent helped the man pick up his boxes. Then she went on her way.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **7:46 PM**

When Kara came home from work, she was planning possible ways to apologize to Lena for the discussion they had had in the morning. Her ideas ranged from flying to South America to buy her that taste of ice cream she liked so much, to buy her a Lord of the Rings cake. _Or I can disguise myself as Galadriel and sing to her. The last time she loved it._

At no point did it occur to her that Lena could wait for her with three kilos of potstickers, two roasted chickens, a caesar salad and two bottles of apple juice. Her girlfriend was wearing her favorite black dress, her hair now a little shorter shining in the candlelight. Kara felt a squeeze of desire between her legs as her girlfriend smiled at her.

"Lena, what's all this?"

"This..." Lena pointed to the table "...is the way I apologize for acting like a witch this morning."

"Ohh, Lena." Kara wrapped her arms around her, feeling the warmth of her skin. "You don't have to apologize for anything. You didn't do anything wrong. I don't want to force you to do something you don't want. If you don't-..."

"Shall we sit down to dinner." Lena took her hand. "I have something to tell you."

Slightly confused, the Kryptonian followed her girlfriend to the table. Kara sat down and watched Lena serve fifteen potstickers on her plate, smiling softly. Her eyes were drawn by the glitter of the medallion on her neck, lying gently on the top of her breasts. With each movement of these, the medallion reflected a glimmer of candlelight.

When Lena finished, she smiled in that lovely way that Kara loved. The blonde reached out and took her hand. Kara Zor-El took off her glasses and left them on the table.

"You look beautiful, I love your new hairstyle."

"Thank you, Puppy." Lena caressed her knuckles. "I wanted to tell you something important. I don't remember if I ever told you, so I wanted it to be special. "

"I'm all ears." Kara smiled brightly.

Lena bit her lip. "I love you, Kara Zor-El."

Kara laughed. "I already know that, you..."

"I mean I love you completely." Lena stroked her hand. "What I want to say is that I admire you. You're the person I admire the most in the world. You literally carry the weight of a dead world on your shoulders, and I have never seen you complain about that." Lena stroked her arm. "You're so... so... strong, Kara. And that has never stopped you from smiling and having friends, from looking for the best in people. You're a completely supernatural being, because even after everything we've been through together, sometimes I look at you and I just can't believe you're real. That someone like you exist and choose to share her life with me."

"Lena, you're going to make me cry." Kara bit her lip.

"I don't just love you, I _adore_ you. You're... you're the best thing that could have happened to me in my life. And sometimes I'm so afraid of losing you that I can't breathe." She took her two hands. "I want you to know that I trust you blindly. Maybe people think you're naive, but I know that's not true. I know you've lived a thousand years in one life, Kara. I know you're fiercely wise. And I trust your judgment, more than any other person in the world." She stroked her thumb. "And if you say that... your friend Cat can help, I trust you."

"Really?" Kara stammered between her desires to let out a sob of happiness.

"Completely."

"I don't get it. What made you change your mind?"

"Something Diana said." Lena smiled. "We had a little conversation in my car. It made me realize some things. Like, if you love someone you have to make sure that person knows that." Lena looked at her with so much love that Kara's hunger went away. "That sometimes, the best things happen if you make the sacrifice of doing something you don't like... And above all, that you can always have a worse name."

Kara raised her eyebrows.

"Athena. Luckily she changed her mind."

Kara burst out laughing. "Oh, Rao..."

"Don't laugh." Lena's red lips curved into a smile. "Now that I've finished spilling my cheesy heart to you, we can start eating."

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **8:26 PM**

Maggie had to blink twice, to be sure that what she saw was not a dirty trick from her nerves.

 _The numbers doesn't match._

She did not expect to find a possible clue in a construction contract. Maybe it was not even a clue, but rather a simple mistake. But a good detective never left any corner unchecked, not even for something as small as what she had found.

 _The L-Corp/LuthorCorp building in New York has 641 rooms. I have seen that number on all construction papers... But this one has date before all of them, and it says clearly: 642._

One of two options: Or she was so paranoid and tired that she saw clues where there were not, or there was a secret room in the New York building. Her hunch told her it was not the first choice.

 ** _CrOcK!_**

Maggie jumped out of her seat when she heard the sound of glass breaking. She took out her pistol and aimed at the kitchen.

"Who's there?" She walked slowly toward the kitchen. "Whoever it's, put your hands where I can see them!"

Maggie kicked the kitchen door. There was no one, not even broken glass.

 ** _cRuCnK!_**

Maggie ran to the bedroom, her gun still steady. The detective kicked the door again.

Nothing and no one.

 ** _RAAAAAJJJJ_**

The sound of fingernails scratching a blackboard echoed in the hallway. _What's going on? What's going on? What's going on?_ Maggie felt an atrocious cold go down her back in liquid form. She stood still, pointing her gun firmly toward the end of the hall, the only place where someone could appear. She did not know how long she stood there, pointing, with beads of sweat pouring down her skin. _Someone is playing me a joke._

 ** _"I'm. not. afraid. of. you."_**

She almost let out a shot when someone knocked softly on the front door.

 _"Babe? I'm Alex."_ She heard her girlfriend from behind it. _"I can't open the door, my hands are busy with the dinner. I brought you pizza. And for me these... raw eggs. Yummy."_

Maggie lowered her pistol and gasped.

 _"Maggie?"_

"Coming, Alex! Give me a minute!"

Maggie forced herself to control her fear by controlling her breathing. _You can't tell Alex._ She put her hands to her head _. She'll insist that stress has eaten your brain. Or worse, she'll believe you and worry excessively over you._ No, not excessively, justly. Even Maggie was worried about herself.

She opened the door. Alex had two boxes of food in her hands; her smile faded when she saw the state she was in.

"Maggie? What happened? Wh-?"

"I'm okay, I'm just tired, very tired." _Please believe me_. "But I think maybe I've found something."


	16. Fast, Competent, and Preferably Sane

**Thanks for your support! If you took the time to leave a review I would appreciate it a lot. (ThankYou, Viny1090 and baratta jennifer)**

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **10:35 PM**

Lena collapsed panting, hot as a supernova explosion. Kara was above her, admiring the delicious sight of the brunette recovering after an orgasm. Her girlfriend was disheveled, damp, flushed, slightly stiff, hand-...

"It's not fair that you haven't even broken a sweat." Lena said, offended like a kitten.

"It's not me who's handcuffed to a bed."

"I should create kryptonite handcuffs." Lena smirked. "I bet you'd like that, would not you, you naughty Puppy?"

Kara was seriously considering the idea when her phone vibrated. Her first impulse was to ignore it, however that was a luxury no superhero could afford.

"Lena, I'm sorry, I..."

"Don't worry, pick up the phone."

Kara held out her right hand, before thinking better and using her left hand. It was a text from her older sister.

 _"Uh huh."_

"What? Is it an emergency?"

"Maggie and Alex are on their way. They may have found something!"

Kara felt the emotion racing through her veins as she finished reading her sister's text. The Kryptonian rose from the bed and began to pick up her clothes.

"I have to call Winn! I think we'll need his help to..."

"Kara." Lena said softly to her girlfriend. "Aren't you forgetting something?"

"Forgetting something? What are you talking a-? Oh, I'm so sorry, Lena! I'll take the handcuffs off right now."

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **10:48 PM**

Alex was standing next to Maggie, looking around. _Windows closed, phones off, and I made sure nobody's followed us here. Although you never know._ Alex had had to take a couple of painkillers to lessen the pain in her muscles. She needed to be ready to fight if anything happened.

Winn had dark circles under his eyes and did not stop yawning. He did not turn his eyes away from the brunette on the couch. Lena had her right hand holding Kara's, and her other hand caressing the medallion on her chest. Her eyes did not move from of the document on her knees.

"It's possible." she said at last. "Both Lionel and Lex were fans of secret rooms. When they arrested Lex, I looked for them all and destroyed them. But I didn't find any in New York." Lena sighed. "I was looking for Lex's hiding places..."

"Not Lillian's hiden places." Maggie nodded. "The hiding places you found were made of lead?"

"Yes, so that Superman couldn't see through them."

"But even if you can't see through them..." Maggie said looking at Kara. "You can find them, can't you?"

"If there's a secret room in that building, I can find it wherever it was, even though I can't see through it." her sister replied.

"Perfect." Maggie clasped her hands together. "And you, Winn, can you get a camera small enough to hide it in my clothes? It has to be totally undetectable to the safety of the building."

"Is it really a question? I could hack L-Corp with my eyes closed."

"Remind me never to make you angry." Lena folded her arms.

"Well, then..." Alex watched Maggie harden like a statue. _Easy, Alex, Maggie knows what she's doing_. "I hope you can lend me your girlfriend for a few hours tomorrow night, Luthor."

* * *

 **J'onn J'onzz**

 **The next morning**

It was a morning like any other for J'onn. The birds sang, people worked, the tamaranean shouted in anger in her cell, M'gann had given him Oreos for lunch, and the sun gave life to the mortals. The strangest thing the Martian expected for that day was some alien attacking the city. Not to find Artemis of Bana-Mighdall feeding chickens in a corner of the main room.

J'onn did not say anything at first, trying to decide whether his mind was playing tricks on him or not. _Sooner or later my old age had to come._ When he was finally convinced that what he saw was real, he walked towards the redhead. The Amazon had installed a chicken coop next to J'onn's office. The chickens crowded as they felt the Martian approaching.

Artemis stopped feeding the plumifers when she saw the Director of the DEO standing next to her.

"... Artemis."

"… Martian."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..." Artemis raised an eyebrow.

"..."

"..."

"... How are these chickens part of my men's training?"

"You would be surprised to know how bad your employees eat." Artemis left the chicken feed on the floor. "The amount of preservatives and chemicals that man's world food has makes them slow and dumb. A warrior should not eat what he doesn't hunt with his own hands. So today during the training of the first level, I will release the chickens and make your kids hunt them. That if they want to eat, of course. The need for food will force them to be faster."

 _Worst of all is that she may be right._

"Move the chicken coop somewhere else. My office is just here, and I can't work with the noise of these... birds." A hen pecked his shoe.

"You should improve your attention span, in a battle the enemy will not always be patronizing with you."

"I doubt that any enemy will attack me with chickens."

J'onn came into his office, wondering what the hell was wrong with the Amazons. _The only sane of them all is Diana... Because Diana's sane, isn't she?_

The Martian was so focused on the matter that he did not notice Diana immediately. Wonder Woman was sitting on the couch in front of his desk, watching her hands on her lap. When their eyes met, Diana smiled.

"Good morning, J'onn."

Despite being surprised, the Martian returned the smile. "Hello Diana, good morning. Can I do something for you?"

"Actually, I thought we could... talk for a minute. It's nothing bad, just talk. If you're too busy, I can leave and come back later. Or we can met somewhere else. As you want."

"I have a few minutes now." The Martian sat down in his chair, still looking at his old friend. "What do you want to talk about?"

Diana smiled and shrugged. "I don't know where to start. I'm sure we have so much to talk about these thirty years. We can start with how you became the Director of DEO."

"The previous Director was trying to kill me in South America." J'onn put his hands together. "A soldier, Alexandra Danvers' father, saved my life. For years I thought they were both dead, and I took Hank Henshaw' identity, but now almost no one calls me that way. It turns out that the real Hank Henshaw and Alex's father were alive in Cadmus."

"Under Li... Luthor's control." Her face hardened. "I heard the story, also how Lena stopped her from committing a mass murder against the aliens of this city." Diana smiled proudly. "Have you found someone to love you?"

"I've found a new family, yes." J'onn smiled at the thought of Alex and Kara. "It wasn't intentional to be honest. I promised Jeremiah Danvers that I would take care of his daughters. And one day I realized that his daughters had adopted me." J'onn leaned back in his seat, still smiling. "I've also... met someone." He looked down at his hands. "It wasn't easy, not at all easy, but when I came to the conclusion that it was worth trying with M'gann, well... Until now I haven't regretted it."

"Wow, don't be so romantic." Diana crossed her legs. "Let's see, why do you say it was so difficult?"

"She's a White Martian. She escaped from her people because she didn't want to be part of the massacre, but she's a White Martian."

Diana's eyes widened in astonishment. "Wow, I didn't expect that... You're dating a White Martian."

"And you're married to a Bana."

"And I'm married to a Bana." Diana pursed her lips and nodded. "If thirty years ago we would have known that we would end up like this..."

"I don't even want to imagine." J'onn smiled. "Is there something bothering you, Diana?"

The brunette shrugged and looked away. "It's so obvious?"

"For a good eye, yes."

Diana sighed. "It's just... it's so much." She looked at him. "I think you're the only person who could understand it. How the passage of time works on someone immortal. How emotions begin to... numb." She pursed her lips. "During my life I've had many friends, but I had never fallen in love. When I realized that I loved Artemis, it was a beautiful and frightening feeling. Beautiful because the world seemed suddenly new and mysterious, and frightening because... she was mortal." Diana looked at her hands. "If she had not become immortal..." she left the sentence unfinished. "And then Lena was born, and I've never been as happy as when I saw her eyes open for the first time."

"I know." J'onn smiled with sadness disguised as nostalgia. "I'm three hundred and twenty years old, but I have never been able to forget what I felt the first time I held K'hym and Tan'ya in my arms. How beautiful their minds were." J'onn looked away. "I would give everything in the world to be able to get them back."

Diana took his both hands, leaving them together on the table. She was silent for a few seconds.

"I used to know when something happened to Lena. And trust me, something always happened to her. My precious girl used to have tantrums very often. Oh, J'onn, and I could not deny her anything. My poor wife had to be strict for both of us." Diana let out a choked laugh. "Every time she was scared, or hurt, or she wanted to play something. I always knew what was going on with her." She gently squeezed his hand. "The pain almost killed me when I thought I would never see her again. And now she's... here."

"I imagine it must be difficult to assimilate."

"It's like when I fell in love: beautiful and frightening." Diana sighed. "Beautiful because I see her, I touch her, I hear her breathe and speak with that extravagant accent, because I know she's a good person even if I didn't teach her to be one." She closed her eyes. "And frightening because I don't know what happens to her anymore, like before. Luthor has taken my baby away... and made her a stranger." Diana rubbed her eyes tiredly. "The person I love most in this world is almost a stranger."

"You will know her, you have plenty of time." J'onn squeezed her hand.

"I know." Diana smiled. "My intention is very far from complaining, I just needed... to talk to someone who understands the passage of time. My Artemis is still very young, her emotions are still completely normal. I love that."

"Diana, I'm sorry to say, but there's nothing normal about your wife." J'onn leaned back. "I just found her in the hall feeding some chickens for- _Hell, I don't even remember why._ "

"Did she really bring those chickens here?" Diana covered her face with her hand. "Hera, sometimes I think I'm married to a repressed psychopath."

"You are."

"Well, we should all get together for dinner. That way I could meet M'gann, and maybe find something to bother you with." Diana rose from the chair. "I have to go now, J'onn, I'm late for a job interview."

* * *

 **Cat Grant**

 **10:54 AM**

Cat saw as the girl ran out in tears and screaming, so fast she hit her nose with the door. The employees witnessed how the girl kept screaming until she got to the elevator. Her screams were heard until she got inside. The employees stood staring at the elevator for a few minutes, then continued to work.

Cat let out a sigh of pure exhaustion. _I'm just asking for an assistant who can be fast, competent, and preferably sane._ _Am I asking for too much? It's being very difficult to replace Kara._ But there had to be a person in the city who could work for her without needing superpowers. She was not asking for much, was she?

 _Just one more for today. I am not going to miss a lunch with Carter by wasting my time on incompetent millenials._

"Next." Cat said without looking up from her notes.

She heard the door being opened, not bothering to look at the new girl. Instead, she simply took the curriculum.

"Okay, so what makes you so special, Di-?" Cat's eyes widened in surprise. She looked up from the curriculum and stared at the woman.

"Special? Well, all people are special in different ways, Ms Grant. I dare to believe that my job skills are..."

 _This must be a joke. There's no way this is not a bad joke._

Standing in front of her was a very serene Wonder Woman saying something, but Cat was not listening. _This is joke from Kara, definitely._ The woman had her hair pulled up in a ponytail and wore a pair of very huge glasses, but It was obscenely obvious to Cat who she was. _'Diana Prince'? How is it possible that no one out there recognized her?_

"... And I solemnly swear never to surrender without fighting if you take me into your service, as the honor of..."

 _Jesus Christ._

Cat had seen bizarre things in her life. She had seen Harrison Ford dance naked in a water show, Justin Bieber puke on stage, Breatrice Prior marry a woman who could be her mother, an alien ghost break a bathroom door, her whole city being controlled by a bad imitation of Avatar. But she could not remember anything more bizarre than this.

"... because it would be an honor to enter into the service of someone who has done so much for women, and..."

"Enough with the joke."

"Joke? I'm afraid I don't know what you mean, Ms..."

"Okay, enough, _'Ms Prince'_. As evidently Kiera and you have lost your minds and think you can make fun of me, I advise you..."

A knock on the door interrupted them. Kara entered the room, with two folders in her arms. _Here she's, the big joker!_

"Cat, I'm really sorry to bother you, but James..." the blonde looked at the brunette. "Oh! You're busy. I'm so sorry, Cat! Really…"

 _Can not be. This is serious?_

"Don't worry, Kara, you haven't done anything wrong." Diana Prince said.

Cat simply watched the conversation, unable to believe what her eyes were seeing.

"Uh? How do you know my name is Kara?"

"Um... I got the information from... Internet."

"You mean CatCo website?"

"CatCo website, exactly."

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you! Are you Cat's new assistant? "

"I don't know yet. I'm Di ... "

Cat interrupted that nonsense, crashing the paper folder into the table. "Kara, she's my new assistant, Donna." _At least let me change your name, for God's sake._

"Actually, I'm Dia-..."

"Could you do me a favor, Kara? Take Donna to her new desk. And you, Donna, I want you to get me a chicken salad without any dressing. Chop chop."

"Come with me, Donna. It's this way." Kara said taking the undercover Amazon to her new workplace.

Once she was alone again, Cat began to massage her temples. _Life never ceases to amaze me._

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **10:01 PM**

She watched the skilful movement of Winn's hands, hiding the hair clip on her tie. _I must look like an idiot with this thing._ The detective, the CEO, and the technician exchanged a dubious look. Lena took a step forward and gently placed a pair of glasses on Maggie's face.

Lena's office was barely lit. Maggie wondered why the brunette was so fond of the dark. _It would be much harder to try to kill her if she didn't have dark corners everywhere_. Winn and Lena watched her up and down. Maggie adjusted her new glasses.

"If it works with Kara, it should work with anyone." Winn said crossing his arms.

"I feel like an idiot with this look."

"Believe me, you should never underestimate the power of a pair of glasses." Lena pursed her lip, caressing her medallion. "Once you get to the building, you must give the false name at the reception. They'll let you and Kara in without asking questions."

"Tell me it's not Christina Aguilera."

"Calm down, you're Emma Mills now."

Maggie looked at her in disbelief. "I'd complain, but I ship Swan Queen. Winn, can you check the microphone again?"

At that moment, Alex finally arrived, opening the door noisily. Maggie watched as she walked a little more slowly and her hair was quite messy. But the smile on her lips lit the dark room.

"Sorry I'm late. We at level two had an intense workout."

Maggie raised her eyebrows. "Alex, are feathers what you have in your hair?"

Her girlfriend just smiled even more. "Those on the first level had an even worse training. But I think it'll work. Your mother's training methods are quite rare, Lena, but I think they'll work."

Maggie noticed that the corner of Lena's mouth twitched a little. _Not long ago, the words 'your mother' never meant anything good to her._ _She'll get over it, she just need time._ Alex smiled as if it were Christmas when she pulled her into her arms, sweetly kissing her lips.

"And this new look?"

"Don't get your hopes up, Danvers. I didn't dress up as a sexy schoolgirl for you."

Alex looked at her with those adorable eyes that she knew she could not resist.

"Okay, maybe some other day."

"Please, refrain yourselves from being overly demonstrative in my office." Lena rubbed her temples. "I think I'm about to have a migraine."

"What's wrong?" Winn looked up from his tablet.

"I just got out of a two-hour meeting with a Scottish jackass." Lena sighed. "His boss couldn't come and instead I had a meeting with this guy. But it's worth it if I can get InGen before the end of the year. Can you imagine everything I could do with that company?"

"You could initiate research to create real Mearas!"

"Mearas?" Lena raised an eyebrow. "Sorry, they're nice but useless. Ents would be a better option. It's a pity that…"

"Nerds." Alex and Maggie said in unison.

Maggie heard a dry thud coming from the balcony. Supergirl came in through the window, disheveled by the wind and smiling like the sun in the morning.

"Hi everybody! I'm sorry for being late. I had to stop an armed robbery, save a dog from being run over, and help a woman in a wheelchair who had fallen across the street." On seeing Lena, Kara gave her a peck on the lips . "Hey you, my little potsticker."

"Potsticker?" Lena laughed. "Really? Looks like you've been inspired, Kara."

"I was just thinking that you need a petname too." Kara giggled sweetly. "And you're adorable and delicious as a potsticker."

"I love you girls, but if you're still that affectionate all the time you're going to end up causing me diabetes." Winn said holding his arms crossed.

Maggie watched Lena roll her eyes. "When we finish all this, remind me to get a girlfriend for Winn. And about that petname... We'll discuss it later, okay?" Lena kissed Kara's nose. "I've to go now. I've prepared the meeting room for the interview I'm going to have with Ms Grant in fifteen minutes. Winn, you know where it's, two floors down and to the left. If something happens, anything, interrupt the interview and come for me."

"Interrupt an interview with Cat Grant? Alex will have to be the one doing that." Winn pursed his mouth at the memory of his former boss. He turned his attention back to his tablet.

"Not even a meeting with the president is more important than Kara." Lena kissed her girlfriend once more. "Maggie, take care of Kara."

"You realize that she's the one who can throw cars, doesn't you?" Maggie said shaking her head. _And she dare say Alex and I are cheesy_.

Lena smiled for the last time and left her own office. Without the presence of the CEO there, being in the room felt different, as if they were doing something forbidden even if Lena trusted them enough to leave them alone in her most private place.

Winn sat down on the couch beside the plumerias. Maggie watched his face gleam in the light of the tablet.

"Okay, Maggie, Kara, you should fly at a height of ten thousand to twelve thousand kilometers in height so you won't be detected by anyone on the ground. I'd recommend about eight hundred kilometers per hour. You would arrive in New York in..."

Maggie felt dizzy for a moment.

"Okay Winn, I got it." Kara looked totally relaxed, as if it were nothing from another world. _Don't you dare to be scared now, Sawyer._ "Are you ready, Maggie?"

"Ready? Please, baby Danvers, I was born ready. "

"Of course, you're the bravest person in the world." Alex smiled at her. Maggie felt her nerves diminish considerably.

The detective and the kryptonian went out onto the balcony. The light from the stars caught the attention of Maggie's eyes, stars that would soon be less distant. _It's cold out here, how cold will it be up there?_ Kara smiled carefree.

"Don't worry, I'm not gonna let you fall."

"Come on Kara, stop talking to me like I'm nervous." Maggie rolled her eyes.

Supergirl smirked and nodded. She approached to take the detective in her arms, but before getting close enough, Alex went out to the balcony too.

"Wait a moment." Her girlfriend approached her. Alex ran her hand through her disheveled hair, drawing a white feather.

Supergirl frowned. "Alex? Do you have feathers in your hair?"

"It's a long story, baby sis. I'll tell you when you get back." Alex looked at Maggie and gave her the white feather. Her smile was brighter than all the stars together. "So you can think of me."

And suddenly Maggie was no longer afraid.

"I don't need a feather to do that, Danvers."

She managed to steal one last kiss from her. _After all, starry nights exists to kiss the love of your life._ She felt as if she were flying. When she opened her eyes, she realized that she was really flying, fastened tightly on Supergirl's arms.

* * *

 **Mearas: magic horses of Lord of the Rings**  
 **Ents: Tree-men of Lord of the Ring** s.


	17. Unidentified Killing Object

**Thanks for your support! If you took the time to leave a review I would appreciate it a lot. (ThankYou, Viny1090,** **Guest, Ari** **and baratta jennifer)**

* * *

 **?**

 **10:19 PM**

 _The sensual young man was right. It was not easy to circumvent the L-Corp security, but to possess powers and resources always makes possible impossible things. And it's not as if they expect to be spied on from a couple of buildings in the distance._

 _The cameras showed Lena Luthor sitting in the meeting room, talking to her assistant. (I bet she has the medallion on right now, I don't think she can resist it). On the other camera, Alexandra Danvers and that beautiful creature were overseeing the Kryptonian's trip._

 _The door to the room opened, but the face of that beautiful man in the camera was much more interesting._

 _"Supergirl is really lovely... Did they say anything important?"_

 _"What was predicted, although my attempt to scare the detective didn't work. She didn't mention the incident to anyone. I should try to scare her again."_

 _"After tonight I don't think it's possible, but I'll think about it." The sound of an open faucet was heard. "I talked to the Amazon. As I assumed, she was furious when I told her the princess is alive."_

 _"She could stop being alive right now if you'd let me kill her."_

 _"Oh sure! She and the two Amazons? And the Kryptonian? And the Martian? You aren't a critical thinker, are you?" There was a sigh. "They all will have to die at the same time. They don't know much, but they know enough. We've never had a situation like this. We can't allow ourselves to be discovered."_

 _"She could die in an accident, and no one would suspect..."_

 _"You think we're dealing with idiots? Don't make me angry. They know there's someone outside, and that's because you took the photographs out."_

 _"And yet you allowed Margaret Sawyer and the Kryptonian to go to New York. I don't get it."_

 _"I have my reasons." The sound of footsteps approached. "You don't understand how hunters think. It's not easy to kill a hunter, and we need them all dead."_

 _"Not him."_

 _On the camera, that delightful brunet creature was talking to Alexandra Danvers._

 _"I admit he's pretty... And you're biting your lip. Do you want him for yourself?"_

 _"Yesssss."_

 _"Okay, but just him. Everyone else will have to die."_

 _"Are you going to kill the girl?"_

 _"We'll do it both... It'll be satisfactory."_

 _"It's a shame we can't get the medallion back."_

 _"It will not matter when she's dead."_

* * *

 **Cat Grant's assistant**

 **10:20 PM**

"Tomorrow you will pick up my son from his piano lessons at three."

"That is an honorable art." Diana answered, following Cat and the other woman down the hall. _She is short, but fast._

"You'll take him to my house, and make sure he eats vegetables. Then I want you to pick up my clothes from the laundry. Make sure they have used vanilla essence and not lavender."

"It will be an honor."

"Donna."

"Ms Grant?"

"Stop repeating the word 'honor' as if you were a samurai, or that Zuko of that caricature that millenials like so much."

"…Fine."

After having a very curious afternoon, Diana was accompanying her new boss to visit Lena. She could not wait to see her again. _She will be very surprised to see me. I can't wait to see her pretty face again._ L-Corp was a place that looked much bigger on the inside than on the outside. Everywhere there were people working, despite it being night. The activity flowed like a great anthill. _Does Lena handle all this? And they dare to tell me that Athena wasn't a good name for her._

Lena's assistant ( _Bess? Tess?_ ) stopped at a pair of huge mahogany doors. Opening them, Diana found herself in a spacious room, with a long table and large windows showing the city at night. Lena was sitting on the last chair, with that smile of a car saleswoman. When she saw her, her smile turned into a grin of astonishment, but only for a second.

"Here's Ms Grant, Miss Luthor." said Lena's assistant.

"Good evening, Lena. I'm surprised you don't get lost in this big place you have." Cat took off her dark glasses.

"Only an idiot would get lost in his own company, Cat." Lena replied with an empty smile. Diana noticed that her right hand caressed her medallion for a second. "Good evening."

"Let me introduce you to my new assistant. Donna, she's Lena Luthor. "

"...Donna." Lena nodded.

"Ms Luthor." Diana winked.

"Sit down, please."

Cat sat down in front of Lena, taking her cell phone and turning on what seemed to be some kind of recorder. _Does my phone have something like that?_ Diana sat next to her new boss, and the other woman ( _Jenn?_ ) next to hers.

"Let me start by thanking you for your generosity by agreeing to this interview." said the older woman politely. "CatCo readers, and surely the whole world, are dying to know where the secret daughter of Wonder Woman came from."

"How to say no when _my Kara_ asked me to?" The car saleswoman smile widened. "I think we can begin, Ms Grant."

"Let's start with the question everyone is asking." Diana noted that Cat's voice was neutral. "Did you know that you are Diana of Themyscira's daughter?"

"I've never known anything about my biological parents. I'm as surprised as everyone, and even more so."

"How did Wonder Woman's daughter end up being raised by the Luthors?"

"An investigation is currently under way on this issue." Lena replied calmly. "I can't reveal details, but it appears that I was kidnapped by Lillian Luthor. Somehow, she managed to make Diana and Artemis believe that I was dead. How she did it and why, is something I'm still ignorant of. "

"Were you in Themyscira?"

"Bana-Mighdall." Lena leaned back in her chair. "It was my birthday."

"Do you have any conjecture about why your adoptive mother...?"

"Kidnapper." Lena interrupted. "After what I discovered, I don't consider Lillian Luthor my mother anymore."

"Does that mean you no longer consider yourself part of the Luthor family?"

"It's not what I meant." Lena exchanged a brief look with Diana. "In spite of having learned my origin recently... I'm Lena Luthor. Nothing can change my story. I have no future plans to change my surname. "

Diana bit her lip. _It's fine, I understand, it's your decision... Anyway, Lena Prince didn't sound so good._ But it hurt anyway.

"How is your relationship with Diana?"

Lena stared at her for less than a second.

"Diana is incredible." Lena smiled sincerely for the first time. "The three of us are getting closer. Diana is a very... wise person." Lena took her hand off from the medallion and put it down on the table. "They have given me the space I have needed and have put my emotions before theirs. I'm grateful for that... It feels good to be with them."

Diana tried to suppress the smile on her lips. _Patience and time, Diana. It's all you need. It's all she needs._

"Do you plan to visit Themyscira soon?"

 _That's a splendid idea!_

"Nothing I would like more, but for now my personal affairs need me here in National City."

 _Ohhh :(_

"...But as soon as I have time, of course I'm going to visit Themyscira."

 _:)_

"Miss Luthor, are you made of clay?"

"Excuse me?"

"The famous origin of your mother. She was born as a clay figure and then came to life. Is that how you were born too?"

For a second, her precious girl could not help but be terrified. Diana shook her head gently, trying not to attract attention. "... No, Miss Grant... I'm not made of clay."

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **10:21 PM**

"Okay, Maggie! Now stay tightly wrapped in my cape. The material will keep you warm at this height. Besides, I think it suits you. Alex would say the same if she were here. Right, Alex?"

 _"As long as my girlfriend doesn't freeze, she would look good even in a spacesuit."_

Maggie Sawyer did not respond, doing her best to not look down.

"Oh Rao, Maggie, this is incredible! The last time I flew with someone was when Alex was sixteen and forgot to do her math homework... "

"Ahaa."

 _Just let her talk, so it will be as if you weren't ten thousand feet high._ The wind was the worst. Maggie had her hair tied in a ponytail, but Supergirl did not, and a generous amount of blonde hair was tickling her nose.

"I've tried to convince Lena to fly with me, but she always says she prefers to see Lexa's death a thousand times before separating herself from the floor. Honestly, Maggie, it can't be that bad... "

"You have no idea."

Kara turned slightly to the left and Maggie let out a squeal accidentally.

"Easy, Maggie. I promise I'll not let you fall."

"You'd better keep to it!" Kara hugged her tigher. _Don't look down. Don't look down. Oh, heck!_ "It's just that I always believed I would die by a bullet, not of a fall at ten thousand feet."

"Because you're police?"

"Because I'm lesbian."

 _"You're not being funny, Maggie."_ She heard Alex's voice in the microphone.

"You're getting pessimistic." Maggie could not be sure, but she thought she saw Kara rolling her eyes. "Wait, I have an idea! I'm going to sing something so you don't feel nervous. Music always makes me forget my fear."

 _Oh, fuck..._

"Kara, it's not necessary..."

 _"You got mud on your face! You big disgrace! Kicking your can all over the place. **WE WILL! WE WILL ROCK YOU!"**_

Maggie began to seriously consider the idea of throwing herself into the void.

Three ridiculous songs later, Maggie managed to see a far point on the horizon. Among all the lights, the Statue of Liberty looked majestic and proud. Maggie could not take her eyes off the beautiful view, momentarily forgetting her vertigo and her fear.

"We're almost there, guys."

" _Did you stop singing?"_ Alex's voice sounded irritated. _"Kara, I love you, but if you sing the Gagnam Style again..."_

"There's L-Corp." Maggie pointed to the west.

The building was easily twice as big as the one in National City. From the height they were at, it looked like a small doll house.

"I'll start descending now, Maggie. We will have to go a little far from the city so no one will see us."

"Go ahead."

Kara began to descend on a nearby mountain, squeezing her grip around her. Maggie felt a tug from the depth of her guts, as if she had been kicked. At least Kara was going fast, although Maggie had to swallow her fear.

When she was finally on the ground, Maggie took off the red cape and returned it to Kara. Her first impulse was to throw herself to the ground and kiss it. _Oh, earth, sweet earth..._

"Okay, Maggie, give me a few seconds to change my clothes. Now we have to run at super speed to L-Corp."

Maggie heard Alex's laugh in the microphone.

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **10:59**

 _"...to run at super speed to L-Corp."_

Alex laughed as she imagined Maggie's face.

"Okay, girls." Winn said at her side. "Once you get to L-Corp, you must turn on your Camera Glasses, Maggie. Alex and I are going to guide you from here."

 _"Alright."_

Alex turned her attention to their notes on the case. Maggie had summarized all the dates, places, and information she had considered important. Written in red letters, the word **_'Photos'_** was at the top, closely followed by the words **_'Book-Crisis-Lillian Luthor'_**. An arrow pointed to the words **_'Medallion-Aletheia (Veritas?)_** '. At the end of the sheet of paper, two words were written close to each other. **_Lena Luthor/Lena of Themyscira - Lutessa Lena Luthor?_**

 _"Okay, we're at L-Corp! I hope you enjoyed the ride, Maggie."_

 _"At least you didn't sing this time... Wait Kara, let me fix my hair... I'm going to turn on the camera, Winn."_

An image appeared on the tablet. Maggie and Kara were entering L-Corp.

* * *

 **Emma Mills**

 **11:04 PM**

Maggie handed the IDs to the guards at the front desk. Despite it being night, activity flowed everywhere within the company.

"Yes, it's here. Emma Mills and Zora Thorul. Ms Luthor gave very specific orders." The guard gave them a couple of passes. "Let us know if you need anything."

"Thank you very much."

She and Kara entered the building. The main living room was a huge octagon, where many people moved about quickly with expressionless faces.

 _"Alright, girls, go to floor four."_

Maggie adjusted her glasses and got into the first elevator they found. Out of the corner of her eye, Maggie noticed that Kara had slipped her glasses down a little, watching everything with quick eyes.

On the fourth floor there were far fewer people. The few they saw were coming in and out of the offices, without looking at them once.

" _Cross that gallery and continue down the hall. Be careful with the cameras, Kara. Lillian Luthor's office was the last one in the hall."_

Maggie and Kara headed for the gallery, trying to hide their faces from the cameras. The hallway indicated was much darker. There were three offices, and they went straight to the last one.

" _Kara, you'll have to force the door a little."_ Alex's voice said. " _But don't break it irreparably._ "

Kara grabbed the door handle and pulled it gently. Maggie heard a slight creak, a sign that the lock had broken. The blonde opened the door and both entered.

The office had obviously been reused, leaving no trace of its previous occupant. It was not very big, in fact. Only a bookcase, a desk, a couple of couches and a tea table.

 _"Turn on the night camera so we can see, Maggie._ "

Maggie pressed the hair clip on her tie. Kara took off her glasses, checking everything around. The detective turned on the flashlight on her cellphone and began scanning the corners of the room. _I don't have super vision, but my experience should work for something... What's this? There're a few small notches on the walls, someone must have been here recently._

"Maggie, there's a room made of lead behind the bookcase." Kara walked over to the bookcase. "You were right."

Maggie felt a weight disappear from her shoulders. We're going forward. I was right. She walked over to the bookcase, standing next to Kara.

"It's very large?"

"Must be medium-sized."

"Check between the books, Kara. The entrance must be near."

Maggie pulled away a little. Kara looked through the books, taking her time with each one. After two minutes in silence, the blonde leaned down to the floor.

"Not in the bookcase, under it... almost... Done!"

The bookcase creaked. Kara lifted it gently and leaned it against the right wall. Maggie lit the secret hiding place with her flashlight.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **11:34 PM**

Kara wiped the dust from her hands in her pants. When she looked up, Maggie was lighting the room with her flashlight.

"Oh shit…"

 _"But what the…?"_

"What? What's inside?" Kara went over.

 _"Sister, no!"_

"Kara, no! Don't look!"

It was too late when Kara noticed. Even with poor lighting, her alien eyes could find a pin in the darkest night.

Her hand covered her mouth to repress an arch.

The bloody images were all over the place. Amputated limbs, internal organs, suspicious substances, a placenta, fetuses. _Merciful Rao, is that an eye? Oh Rao, how sick was this woman?_

 _"Kara, get out of there. Kara!"_

Maggie pulled her out of the hiding place. The powerful Supergirl leaned her weight against the wall, watching Maggie's lips move but without hearing a word.

 _"-ra? Are you okay? Kara?"_

"Alex, please calm down." Maggie said. "Kara, do you hear me? Are you okay?"

 _"Y-Yeah... I'm sorry, I never..."_

"Don't worry, take it easy." Maggie rubbed her shoulder. "The first time's always the hardest. You've done more than enough. I'm going to check there, okay?"

"Ok-kay."

Maggie returned inside the secret room. Kara closed her eyes and massaged her temples. _How many years have I been Supergirl? I should be ashamed of myself_. But she had never seen anything like this. She _knew_ how cruel humans _could be_ , but she had _never_ _seen_ it. ( _That woman is a monster a monster and Lena had to grow up with her my poor..._ )

"Are you fucking kidding me?"

"Maggie?"

" _Maggie, what-"_

"Easy, I'm okay. Give me a minute. I think... Oh... Alex."

 _"Maggie, what's wrong? What did you find?"_

"...A diagnosis inside a scientific journal." Maggie left the secret room, holding another book in her hands. It looked like an old school notebook. She was lighting it with her flashlight. "Not to break with tradition, the journal is in Greek. But this diagnosis... says Lutessa. Lutessa Lena Luthor. It says she had something called Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Alex?"

Her sister did not answer at once.

 _"Alex?"_

" _Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy is a disease that affects children."_ Alex responded in her doctor's voice, Kara had not heard that voice in a long time. _"It's extremely rare, caused by a defective gene in a muscle protein. It's almost always attacks boys... but it's not impossible for a girl to be affected by the disease. It's horrible, it causes muscle deformity and mental retardation... and it's terminal."_

"What's the life expectancy?"

 _"There have been cases where the patient has survived 25 years..."_

"Alex, for real."

" _Most don't survive the first two years. More if it's a girl._ "

Kara could not hold back her astonishment. "She was trying to create a cure for her daughter. And then…"

"Diana ruined her plans that night." Maggie's eyes gleamed in the darkness. For a moment, Kara thought Sherlock Holmes would look like this in real life. "And Lillian ran out of hope."

Kara sat down on the desk. "Lutessa disappeared without a trace..."

"...because she died." Maggie's heartbeat quickened. "Everything fits. Luthor couldn't find a cure for her daughter because Diana discovered her. And Lutessa died. And then..." Maggie was talking so fast that Kara did not understand the last part.

"What did you say?"

"It was for revenge." Maggie looked at her with those fiery eyes. "Everything fits. No no, we're lacking some details, but it was for revenge. Lillian wanted to get revenge on Diana for Lutessa's death, and what better way than taking her daughter away?"

"But where does the Amazon fit into all this?" Kara asked.

Maggie blinked a couple of times. "Are you totally sure there's a traitor Bana?"

"Artemis said there was no other way someone could have kidnapped Lena in the middle of the night. And she must know her own people."

The detective sighed. "I still don't know, maybe-...?"

 _"Alex, what's that!?"_

Kara could hear the fear in Winn's voice. Her heart froze. "Winn?"

" _Is that coming here? Alex!"_

 _"Winn, what the he-? Oh, my God."_

"Alex, what the hell is going on!?"

" _Kara, you have to come ba-!"_ **_*CRRASSH* 'AHHH!' "_** _Kara, you have to come back now! That thing-" ***Zuuuum***_

Kara only managed to wrap Maggie in her cape before taking her in her arms and going through the glass window.

* * *

 **?**

 **11:59 PM**

 _"Shit, but what...?"_

 _"Well, I didn't expect this."_

 _"Should we do something?"_

 _"Are you joking?" There was a snort. "This is a tremendous stroke of luck. If she kills her, our problems would all disappear together. Don't even think about intervening."_

 _"I thought you wanted to kill her."_

 _"And I want to kill her. But life isn't about what we want, but about what we need."_

* * *

 **Lena still Luthor**

 **11:58 PM**

"Have you inherited any kind of superpower, Ms L-...?"

 ** _*Pum...* *Pum...* *Pum ...* *Pum...*_**

Cat left the question incomplete when the glass of water in front of her began to tremble. The four people stared at it in amazement. Lena exchanged a look with Diana.

"What i-?"

 ** _*CRAAAASH*_**

The window was broken by ( _I_ _s that a fucking hand!?_ ) a giant hand. The hand took the table and shattered it into thousands of pieces. Lena heard a scream, and she and Jess backed away on instinct. Diana had managed to push Cat Grant in time. The giant arm buried its nails in the wood of the floor.

" _Princess, Princess, where are you?_ " A shrill voice hurt her ears. _"Mmm... There you are!"_

A giant fist shattered the wall in front of Lena. The impact made bricks and dust fly away. One of them almost smashed Jess' head.

Through the hole, Lena saw a monumental head staring back at her and smiling. _Oh, please not again, not..._

 _"So you're Diana's daughter? I imagined you more ferocious. I don't understand how nobody has managed to kill you until now... Better for me! That satisfaction will be mine. It will be wonderful to see Diana's face!"_ The giant woman laughed. " ** _GIGANTA SMAAAAAASH!"_**


	18. SMASH!

**No comments last chapter :(**

* * *

 **J'onn J'onzz**

 **11:59 PM**

J'onn awoke suddenly, realizing that he had fallen asleep sitting on the couch. The sun was no longer coming through the windows and the temperature had dropped a couple of degrees. _How long was I asleep?_ He rubbed his forehead. _Why did M'gann not wake me up? It's already quite late, I should go home._

The Martian rubbed the back of his neck and rose from the couch, wondering where M'gann would be, and if she still had that dreadful dizziness she had had all week. J'onn did not know if he should be worried. _Maybe I should convince M'gann to go see a doctor... The fatigue is affecting my brain, there are no doctors for Martians... Maybe Eliza Danvers could do me a favor._

J'onn found M'gann in the kitchen, but he did not expect to find her that way. The White Martian was sitting at the table, staring at her fingers, as if trying to burn them with heat vision. There were dark circles under her eyes, and her mouth was tight in a very thin line. In fact, she was so intent on her thoughts that she did not even see J'onn enter the room.

"Do you still feel dizzy?"

M'gann came out of her thoughts with a start. She looked nervously at J'onn, before recovering her usual calm look.

"Actually, I feel much better." M'gann smiled to reassure him.

J'onn sat down at the table.

"... Perhaps we should pay a visit to Eliza Danvers, just to make sure you're alright."

"It's not necessary, I'm okay."

"You don't look so good."

It seemed that M'gann was about to argue, but instead she clenched her fist and bit her lip.

"You know? You're right, I'm not okay. But it has nothing to do with my dizziness."

 _Okay, now I'm worried._ J'onn looked at her calmly, inviting her to continue.

"J'onn... do you...?" M'gann bit her lip. "Do you care about me? Do I make you feel happy?"

The Martian did not need to be any telepath to understand that this was not the real question. _'Do you love me? A white Martian?_ '. But he chose to ignore that silent question. Perhaps because he was not ready to say those three words... Perhaps because part of his brain still considered it impossible tell that to a White Martian.

"M'gann, of course I care about you." J'onn took her hand, looking into her eyes with sincerity. "And of course I feel happy with you. I like to be with you. I like our relationship... Where does this question come from? You're starting to worry me."

Her lip trembled. _Is she about to start crying? What's wrong? Is she sick and has she not told me?_

"I have to tell you something." M'gann took a deep breath. "J'onn, I'm..."

Faithful to the whims of fate, the Green Martian's private communicator began to vibrate. M'gann closed her eyes and bit her lip.

"Sorry, just-"

"Take it, It's okay."

J'onn took his communicator out of his pocket; It was an emergency message from Winn Schott. _'Problems at L-Corp. We're being attacked by a giant. HELP'._ J'onn ignored the 'giant' part ( _giant?_ ) and concentrated on _'problems at L-Corp. HELP'._

J'onn rose from the table. "M'gann, I'm sorry. There's an emergency. I have to go."

"Okay, I get it." M'gann did not look at him.

"We'll talk when I get back, I promise." J'onn felt the need to demonstrate his sincerity somehow. He kissed M'gann's forehead. "If you feel dizzy, please call Dr. Danvers."

* * *

 **Wonder Woman**

 **0:01 AM**

Diana watched in horror as Doris Zuel was about to crush Lena.

 _NO!_

Wonder Woman jumped over the rubble of the table, managing to pull Lena away in time. Giganta's fist caused the floor to explode; the building trembled, the world lost its balance momentarily. Lena lost her balance and fell back. Diana, fast as a snake, took a piece of chipped wood and stuck it into the hand of her old enemy.

 _"OU! That isn't right!"_

Giganta's hand closed in a fist and shattered the floor in front of her. Diana barely managed to dodge the blow. Taking another piece of broken wood, she nailed it violently under the huge nail of her index finger.

 _"OOUY! You little bitch!"_

 _I need my lasso. I have to remove these civilian clothes._

Giganta released swift violent swipes on the whole room. A large piece of wood flew out and almost hit Cat Grant. The floor was being completely shattered, the structure ripped from the roots. One of Giganta's blows struck Diana completely, causing her to flip around and hit herself on the floor. The Amazon got up immediately. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Lena trying to reach out to her assistant.

"Jess, try to reach the door! I have to go for Cat! "

"Lena, no, stay-...!"

Giganta's fist struck in front of her so hard Diana fell back. Her hand reached out to find another piece of wood when she was lifted into the air. Giganta squeezed her in her fist, looking at her with contempt.

"Flea."

Giganta threw her through the air with the strength of a titan. As she spun uncontrollably, Wonder Woman finally got a chance to take off her civilian clothes.

* * *

 **The one that someone always wants to kill**

 **0:07 AM**

Lena's heart stopped for a moment as the giant took Diana in her fist and threw her into the air. Maybe it was the fear's fault, or maybe it was because of the blow, but Lena found herself screaming _"Mother!"_ for the first time.

 _"GIGANTA SMAAAASH!"_

And then almost the whole floor collapsed.

Lena only managed to see Jess depart in time, sticking her body to the wall and to what was left of the floor. Her secretary moved toward her, sliding swiftly and trying not to lose her balance.

"Ms Luthor, get out of here! I'll try to get to Ms Grant!"

 _"Princess, Princess! Where are you!?"_ Giganta crushed the opposite wall. _(Cat I have to help her I have to...)_

"Go to the door!" Jess pulled a pistol from inside her coat.

"You know how to shoot!?"

"Of course I know how to shoot! Supergirl can't be everywhere!"

 _"WHERE ARE YOU!?"_

The whole wall in front of them was shattered.

 _"I found you."_

Jess shot the giant's face. One of the bullets struck her lower lip. A trickle of blood trickled down her chin.

 _"Stupid little flea!"_

Giganta clenched her fist and thrust it forward, her murderous gaze on Jess.

"Jess, NO!"

Lena got in the way, closing her eyes. Her secretary shouted something. _That's it, I came this far. At least I told Kara how much I love her._ But instead of feeling the pain of the impact, Lena felt a fleeting heat run through her body from her chest to the tip of her hair, like a nuclear explosion inside her. Opening her eyes, she realized the giant was howling in pain.

 _"Oooouuhhhhh! WHAT DID YOU DO!?"_

The giant caught her in her fist. Jess, in spite of her surprise, shot the knuckle, but Giganta pushed her away like an annoying insect. Lena watched in horror as her assistant nearly fell down the huge pit that was once the floor. Lena was lifted in her fist and taken out, into the cold night air. The wind of the height struck her face like a slap. The immense woman looked at her with furious blue eyes.

 _"You're going to pay it dearly."_

Two things happened at the same time. Wonder Woman kicked Giganta in the nose with _all_ the strength of her powers. And that caused the giant to open her fist. Lena began to fall into the void in a whirlwind of confusion and terror. The blow caused Giganta to lift her leg. Miraculously, Lena managed to cling to one of the orifices in the monster's belt.

 _"HELLO AGAIN, DIANA!"_

Lena could not hear anything else. Absolutely all her strength was concentrated on holding on and not falling.

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **0:14 AM**

Winn was still screaming. "Kara, do you hear me!? Kara!"

Alex ran to the balcony, preparing her gun even though she knew it was useless. _My armor. I need my armor. Shit, I have to do something!_

She watched in horror as the giant had Lena in her fist. Wonder Woman came flying at full speed, throwing a violent kick to Giganta's nose. The blow made the giant go back a couple of meters and release ( _LENA!_ ) Lena. Her heart stopped for a second, and it began to beat again when she realized that Lena had managed to cling to the belt of the giant's pants.

 _"HELLO AGAIN, DIANA!"_

Giganta dodged the next kick. One of her punches hit Wonder Woman, but Diana managed to hold on to her enemy's thumb and twist it so hard that Alex could see the bone break. The giant screamed in pain. One of her kicks hit the opposite building, causing Lena to almost fall from the belt.

Alex ran inside the office.

"Winn, leave that! Get out of here! I have to find…"

The door of Lena's office exploded with a kick. Artemis of Bana-Mighdall stormed into the room, a sword shining in her hand.

"Where's Lena!? Where's she!?"

"On that thing's belt!"

Artemis ran to the balcony, followed by Alex. Giganta and Wonder Woman were spinning in such a fast swirl that Alex could hardly follow it. Diana had her lasso in her hands, dodging swipes so fast that a fly would be envious. Lena was still clinging tightly to the belt. Alex felt her heart sink.

"Danvers!" Artemis looked at her. "Can you climb?"

"Yes."

Winn went out on the balcony. "Climb!? What are you saying!?"

Artemis ignored him. "Do you trust me, Alexandra?"

Alex thought for a second before nodding.

"Then take this."

Artemis pulled a curved blade-dagger from her belt and handed it to Alex. The Amazon climbed onto the edge of the balcony, and Alex followed her, pretending she was not afraid of what she was about to do.

"Alex! What are you doing!? Get down from there!"

"Go get J'onn, Winn."

"Are you crazy!? You're going to kill yourself!"

"No, crybaby. We're going to save my daughter."

Giganta came close enough for a couple of seconds. Alex squeezed the dagger between her teeth and they jumped from the building.

* * *

 **Super Worried**

 **0:29 AM**

Supergirl and a very dizzy Maggie Sawyer came flying into the city when the giant threw Wonder Woman into the glass walls of the Chevrolet building. The Amazon had a wound on her forehead, and an expression of pure anger on her face. She was the terrible image of an angry Goddess.

"Kara, wait! Look!"

Supergirl turned her eyes to L-Corp ( _RAO NO WHAT HAPPENED NO LENA!_ ), where a woman was trying to get her attention from what was left of the meeting room. Kara managed to recognize Cat before the floor beneath her feet collapsed. **_CAT!_**

She squeezed her grip around Maggie and threw herself at Cat's rescue. She caught her a few feet off the ground with her free arm. Supergirl flew a distance away from the giant, leaving the two women on the floor. Cat was covered in dust and her pupils were dilated. Kara's concern hit her so hard her vision was blurry for a moment. _Calm down, Kara, calm down, she hasn't broken anything, just a sprained wrist and a few scratches, she's okay._

"Le-…?"

"The giant has her! Come on, Kiera, hurry up!"

Supergirl flew out.

* * *

 **Little Thumb Danvers**

 **0:31 AM**

Alex did not know how strong her nerves were until she climbed a furious giant that kept moving. Her hands were locked in the fabric of Giganta's black shirt, with such a force it could only be attributed to adrenaline. She could not see what was happening, she did not know if Diana was winning or not. _If I lose concentration, I'm going to fall._ And she could not fall, she had to get to Lena.

"Alexandra, the dagger!" Artemis shouted at her side, holding a button with her left arm. Alex could not answer, because she had the curved blade-dagger in her mouth. "Sink it into the fabric!"

Alex watched Artemis sink her dagger into the shirt, using it as a sharp hook. _Come on, Danvers, come on, Danvers!_ Alex released her right hand for less than a second, managing to take the dagger from her mouth and plunge it with all her might into the giant shirt. A second later, Giganta turned so violently that Alex was sure she would have fallen if she were not holding the dagger in her right hand.

"Good!" shouted the redhead at her side.

 _"GIGANTA SMAAAASH!"_ Alex heard a terrible rumble.

"On the count of three! You must hold the dagger with both hands!" Shouted Artemis. "Are you ready!?"

Alex nodded.

"One…!"

"Two...!" _I can do it, I can do it._

 ** _"Three!"_**

Alex felt her heart rise to her throat as they began to descend all the way to the belt. The sharp daggers tore at the shirt, driven by their weight. At that moment Alex could not think or reason, nor even remember her own name. She only knew that their lives depended on their holding on that daggers. The wind wad disastrous to her eyes and her balance. Giganta turned again and Alex almost fell. The giant's shirt began to tear apart.

 _"STOP MOVING, WONDER WHORE!... But what is this? DAMN FLEAS!"_

 _Shit_

Giganta almost flattened Artemis with a swipe, but the Amazon managed to jump and hold onto Alex. The extra weight made them glide faster. When they reached the belt Alex almost fell, but the Amazon had held fast to the leather material, and tightened her grip on the agent's arm with a force of steel.

Both were in the belt. They clung tightly to the material with arms and legs, clenching their grip when Giganta jerked violently again. Alex's hair covered most of her face, but she managed to see Lena's figure about ten feet away. _Almost... Almost..._

"Lena!" Alex heard Artemis shout. "Lena! Bloody Tartarus, she can't hear me!"

"We'll have to advance!"

Both women advanced slowly up the belt, trying to get Lena's attention, but the wind and the noise of the fight drowned their voices _. Come on, Lena, turn your fucking head!_ Alex and Artemis had advanced almost a meter when Lena finally listened them. The CEO's hair was disastrous, with her hands clutching desperately to an orifice in the belt.

It was then that Alex saw Kara for the first time, flying over Giganta's head. Her enraged sister used her heat vision on the giant woman's chest.

 _"AAAAAHHHHHH!"_

Alex and Artemis finally managed to get to Lena. Artemis took her daughter's arm and tried to pull her up, but the CEO did not move an inch.

"My blouse is hooked to the belt!" Lena shouted.

"Alexandra, hold my legs!"

 _Please don't tell me she's going to..._

Artemis let go of her grip and dropped down on the belt. Alex's heart leapt inside her chest, holding her legs with all her strength. _Shit Shit Shit Shit Shit!_ The Amazon managed to reach Lena's blouse, ripping it up quickly. Alex felt a violent tug on her clothes, Lena had gripped her jacket and pushed herself up. Once Lena was next to her, they both lifted up the Amazon again.

"Lena! Are you hurt?"

The brunette shook her head. Giganta let out the most horrible scream Alex could ever have imagined.

"How are we going to get out of here!?" Lena shouted.

Alex looked around urgently. _Shit Shit Shit Think Danvers Thi-._ The belt buckle was about a meter away. Alex could see the concern in Artemis' eyes as the Amazon realized what her plan was.

"The fall will bring you near to the ground!"

"DANVERS, NO!"

Alex began to quickly move towards the belt buckle, ignoring the orders of the Amazon. She cursed her hands for sweating. _Come on, just a little more, just a little more. Almost. Almost. YES!_ Alex slid her legs behind the belt, and she pushed herself down to try to reach the silver buckle. _FUCKING BITCH, STOP MOVING NOW, DAMN YOU!_

The first thing she heard was Lena's _("ALEX!")_ scream.

Then a gigantic hand that was about to crush her like a flea. _"I HATE THE FLEAAAAS!"_

But instead of feeling the impact, Alex Danvers only felt the terror when she saw an orange stain jump to get in the way and receive the smack. Artemis fell into a vacuum.

* * *

 **Wonder Woman**

 **0:56 AM**

Diana watched Supergirl use her heat vision on Giganta's chest. Doris let out an atrocious scream that reverberated in their ears.

 _"Who the hell invited you to the party, Supergash!?"_

"STOP THIS NOW!"

 _Why doesn't anyone ever understand that that never works?_

Giganta was having trouble keeping up with both _. But she's fast, very fast, and Supergirl is so furious-._ The blonde attacked Giganta with her heat vision again. Diana tried to find a space to use her lasso, but Giganta moved faster and faster, product of her despair. A complete building was destroyed by a poke. _She's going to shred everything!_

 ** _"I'm sorry to have to tell you this, Miss Wonder Woman, but if you don't control the damage you cause during a fight, you're rather a public threat than a superhero."_**

"Supergirl, wait!" The Kryptonian did not listen or ignored her. _Of course, Lena is in danger and Supergirl is a young woman in love. Think, Diana, think._

Wonder Woman crashed into Supergirl and began to spin around Giganta. Doris began to spin too, trying to reach them, causing the earth to tremble.

"LET ME GO!"

"I have a plan, I need you!" They dodged a huge punch. "We have to use my lasso! Her weakness is my lasso!"

Supergirl took the other end of her golden lasso. "You fly to the left and I to the right!"

The Amazon saw the blonde fly at full speed to the right as she flew to the left. Giganta tried to shake them both, but her arms were being caught in the lasso. Desperate, the giant tried to let herself down into small buildings to the left. Only Supergirl and Diana's combined strength avoided the disaster.

Giganta began to shrink in size, twisting within the blessed lasso. Diana and Supergirl did not stop flying around her, moving closer and closer to the floor. At a certain point, Wonder Woman's heart quickened as she finally caught sight of Lena and ( _Alex Danvers?)_ holding on tightly to Doris's belt. _Just a little more and we will reach the floor, resist..._

Out of the corner of her eye, Diana managed to see armed people pointing toward Doris. _J'onn_. The DEO soldiers began firing tranquilizing darts at Giganta. Her enemy twisted one last time and at last stood still. Supergirl tied her tightly with her lasso.

Lena and Alex Danvers fell to their knees in the street, resting their hands on the floor and trying to catch their breath. Supergirl went to them immediately. Diana managed to exchange a glance with J'onn before following the alien.

Supergirl enveloped the two women in her arms. **_"Oh thanks Rao you're fine I was so worried ALEX OH RAO you've blood on your chin Lena Lena Lena say something why you look so scared!"_**

Lena and Danvers tried to stand, but they were too weak. They were both struggling to catch their breath. Diana approached her daughter and tried to help her not to fall.

"Lena, not so fast, honey. Everything is fine. You're safe now."

"-mis..."

"What are you trying to say?"

"-temis... fell..."

Diana's heart almost exploded in her chest. Supergirl reacted first, rising into the air and looking down with a deathly pale face. Wonder Woman squeezed Lena's arm and then followed her. Supergirl's head was spinning all around them, checking the distance with her vision.

"There!"

Supergirl flew into a parking lot to the east. Diana followed her at full speed, her heart in her sleeve. _Please, I can't lose her, nor now or ever. Hera, Aphrodite or whoever please no no no no..._ She had crashed into a car, shattering the windshield. _Oh no no no she's hurt and bleeding I need..._

"Diana, calm down, she's okay! She has broken some bones and three ribs but she's going to be okay!"

"Artemis!"

Diana turned away from Supergirl and ran to her wife. She removed the red hair from her forehead and her eyes met her green ones.

"Artemis! Can you hear me!?"

"Of course... You're screaming... Lena?"

"Lena is fine! Missy, my love, everything will be fine! You'll be fine! I'll take you to the hospital! I…"

"We have to…"

"What!? What do you need!? Tell me!"

"We have to... adopt her."

"What?"

"We have to adopt her, Diana. Alex Danvers."

"What?"

"She would be the perfect Amazon and a good sister to Lena."

"If you weren't hurt, I would hit you."

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **3:47 AM**

Kara walked softly into her own bedroom. Everything was as before, Artemis was still sleeping in her bed with her bandaged torso, Lena and Diana were still talking quietly sitting next to her. Diana had dark circles under her eyes and Lena looked like a survivor of some massacre. _She was trapped for almost an hour in a place many meters high, being constantly shaken, about to fall at any moment... Her own personal nightmare._ Lena's hands trembled slightly as she stroked the golden medallion. _Fuck you, Rao._

Kara moved forward gently to her girlfriend, sliding her hands on her shoulders.

"You have to rest."

"Not until Alex comes back." Her hands tightened on the object.

"Baby, she's moving Doris Zuel to a special cell outside the city. She's not coming back soon." Kara tried to speak as softly as possible.

"Then I'm going to wait for her to call, she said she'd call." Lena bit her lip. "Your sister climbed to a giant to save me, Kara. I can't rest while she..."

"Okay." Kara kissed her forehead, trying to convey all her love in the kiss. "As you wish."

Diana was rubbing her temples gently. Kara thought she looked the thousand years she actually had.

"Diana, can we talk for a minute?" Kara muttered. "It will only be a moment."

"Can't it wait until tomorrow?"

"I'm afraid not, I'm sorry."

Diana of Themyscira left the room, walking more heavily than usual. Lena put her hands around Kara's face, caressing her cheeks.

"What are you going to tell her?"

"The truth." Kara murmured. "I'm going to tell her that I'm Supergirl, and I'm going to... tell her what we found at L-Corp. You and I will talk about it tomorrow, I don't think you can handle more emotions for today."

"How bad was it?" Lena seemed about to fall asleep.

"It was... delicate." Kara rubbed her shoulders with love. "I'll tell you everything in the morning. Trust me."

"Always."

Kara kissed her long on the lips and left the room.

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **3:50 AM**

Wonder Woman sat on the table in front of her, looking as tired as Alex had seen her an hour ago, when she climbed into a truck to transfer Doris Zuel.

Maggie went straight to the point, as she felt the Amazon needed. "We went to New York, and found a journal belonging to Lillian." Maggie gave Diana the journal. "It seems to be a scientific journal. It's also written in Greek." Maggie took a deep breath, then using her detective voice to speak. "This is what Lillian was doing thirty years ago that night. She was trying to create a cure for a deadly disease called Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. She was trying... to save Lutessa."

Maggie let her words be absorbed by the brunette's tired brain.

Diana blinked a couple of times. "Lutessa..."

"She must have passed away long ago, Diana." Maggie tried to make her face look as open and honest as possible.

"Lilly was trying to save her..." Diana bit her lip. "Oh, Hera ..." Her eyes filled with tears. "And when I ruined her plans… she took Lena away."

"That's what Supergirl and I think."

"Supergirl is into all this? What?"

"Yes, I am." Kara walked out into the kitchen, without her glasses on. "Anything that includes Lena's welfare is my business." she said softly. "As much as Kara Danvers or as Supergirl."

Diana's face froze for a couple of seconds. It seemed she was seeing Kara for the first time. Maggie hoped to see surprise in that thousand-year-old face, and there was surprise, but mixed with something else, something she could not name.

"You're Supergirl." she said at last.

"Yes, I am." Kara Zor-El took a seat on the chair. "I hope you don't get mad at us for keeping the secret. Believe me, it wasn't because we didn't trust you, but we the superheroes that have a secret identity are very careful about it. The lives of our loved ones depends on us not being discovered."

"I understand." Diana sighed. "I had never had a secret identity until now, but I can fully understand it."

Maggie looked at Diana. "Unlike the previous book, this one has legible writing. This is important evidence in case that we want to construct an indictment of at least four crimes against Lillian. Could you read it for us...? "

"... Tomorrow." Kara finished. "Could you read it for us tomorrow?"

Diana smiled slightly and nodded. The look on her face was a strange mixture of relief and melancholy. _Now she knows why Lillian kidnapped Lena... And she also knows that a girl she saw be born is dead._

"Umm, we won't bother you any more."

"You've never bothered me." Diana murmured. "Since I've been back, all you have done is help me." Diana sighed deeply. "But I would like to go back to the bedroom, with Lena and Missy."

"Of course."

"Thank you, Kara. Thank you, Maggie."

Wonder Woman walked to the corridor leading to the bedroom. When she left, Maggie gave the blonde a look of reproach. Kara just shrugged. "The poor woman has already had too many emotions for one night. Hell, Maggie, we've all gone too far for one night, including you. I think you need to rest more than all of us."

Maggie watched Lillian's journal almost with maternal protection.

"It will still be here tomorrow, Maggie." Kara took it from her hands and put it in a kitchen drawer. "If Alex were here, she would want you to rest."

"Alex climbed up a fucking giant and she's still out there." Maggie's head began to ache.

"My sister is the exception to all the rules that exist." Kara smiled. "There's a guest room, or you can sleep on the couch. I'll go see Lena."

Maggie watched silently as the Kryptonian came out of the kitchen. She rubbed her eyes and then checked her watch. _It's four in the morning, not even Alex can go so long without rest after the night we had._ She did not want to sleep without Alex at her side. _But Kara is right, I'm dying to go to sleep._

The detective decided she would only take a short nap, since Alex would not be long in coming back. Maggie went into the living room and leaned back on the couch, hugging one of the cushions. Her entire body relaxed immediately, feeling a shiver so pleasurable that it was almost orgasmic. _This is the best couch in the world. I'm going to make Lena give me one in payment for my services. It's the least I deserve after hearing Kara imitate Whitney Houston._ Supergirl had not conquered her girl with her beautiful voice.

Maggie was about to fall asleep when her phone vibrated. Muttering curses, Sawyer readed the text.

 ** _*Hey Sawyer ;) Are you still awake?*_**

Maggie's frustration turned to happiness. _*I was thinking about my girlfriend, the best and greatest person on the world. Do you know her? If she hadn't decided to work for the government, she'd have been a great mercenary.*_

 ** _*Mercenary, eh? Sounds like your girlfriend is a dangerous woman.*_**

 _*Mmm, I have weakness for women of action. My girlfriend stabbed a super strong alien, climbed a giant, and gave up her favorite jacket just to help a friend.*_

 ** _*Your girlfriend would stab hundreds of tamaraneans, climb a thousand giants, and give up two leather jackets just to see you smile every day ;) *_**

"Idiot." Maggie said, smiling. _*Where are you now?*_

 ** _*J'onn had to come and check on M'gann; just a moment. I'm waiting for him, in ten minutes I'll see your beautiful cheeks again.*_**

Kara returned to the living room, smiling softly and with her cellphone in her hand.

"Maggie, look at this." Kara walked over to her, Maggie lifted her head. "Look what I found when I entered the bedroom."

Kara showed her a photo recently taken with her cellphone. On the screen, Lena Luthor and Wonder Woman were sleeping with their heads resting on Artemis' two shoulders; Lena on the right and Diana on the left.

Maggie smiled. "Lena Luthor drooling in her sleep. Can you send me this picture?"

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **4:13: AM**

Alex was tired, so tired that she felt she could sleep for a week. Her mind kept thinking of Maggie's smile, of concern in Lena's eyes, of Artemis falling into the void... She just wanted to go home. _Come on J'onn, hurry up. You said you'd just check that M'gann was okay._

Unable to contain her anxiety, she decided she was going to send a text to Maggie. _If she's still awake._

 _*Hey Sawyer ;) Are you still awake?*_

To her relief, Maggie answered quickly **. _*I was thinking about my girlfriend, the best and greatest person on the world. Do you know her? If she hadn't decided to work for the government, she'd have been a great mercenary.*_**

 _*Mercenary, eh? Sounds like your girlfriend is a dangerous woman.*_

 ** _*Mmm, I have weakness for women of action. My girlfriend stabbed a super strong alien, climbed a giant, and gave up her favorite jacket just to help a friend.*_**

 _*Your girlfriend would stab hundreds of tamaraneans, climb a thousand giants, and give up two leather jackets just to see you smile every day ;) *_

"I love you, Maggie." Alex whispered to her phone.

 ** _*Where are you now?*_**

 _*J'onn had to come and check M'gann just a moment. I'm waiting for him, in ten minutes I'll see your beautiful cheeks again.*_

A dry noise came from inside M'gann's apartment. Alex put her phone away quickly, wondering if she should take her gun or not. She decided to make sure first.

"J'onn? M'gann? What was that noise?"

"Alex..."

Alex did not think twice and went into the Martian's house. Her tired heart fluttered as she saw J'onn on the couch, being gently shaken by an impossibly pale and worried M'gann.

"Damn fucking bloody hell, J'onn? J'onn, do you hear me? What happened?"

"He fainted, Alex." replied M'gann, hard as a stone.

"What happened?"

"It's nothing."

"M'gann, what happened?"

"Alex, I'm sorry, but it's none of your business."

 _"M'gann. What. happened?"_

The white Martian trembled like a leaf. "I just... I just told him that I'm pregnant."


	19. Alex's Drunken Birthday

**Recommendation: read the first scene after listening "The Greatest" by Sia (The perfect song for Alex)**

* * *

 **Interlude (part one).**

 **Where Alex celebrates her birthday, almost everyone is happy, and they drink alcohol.**

* * *

 **Diana Prince**

 **Three weeks later; Saturday afternoon**

 _Carter has great wisdom for his age._ He was sitting beside her that beautiful afternoon with orange sky, on a bench in the park, explaining her how to download music on her cellphone. Diana listened in amazement to the teenager's explanations. He had also been able to teach her to send text messages, turn on Bluetooth, use Tumblr, take photos ( _Lena doesn't seems very happy with that one. I don't understand why, I only took fifteen pictures of her while she was having lunch_ ). The internet tool was so huge, as well as useful and complex. _And Carter seems to handle it so well for his young age... Athena bestows her gifts on the most unexpected people._

"And then you just wait for the song to finish downloading, Donna." Carter explained. Diana had already given up correcting both him and her mother. "These songs that you like are so old... I know! I'm gonna show you one of my favorites. It's from Sia, and nobody can not like Sia."

Diana shrugged. Her eyes moved a few feet forward, where Artemis was training Alex Danvers with a Bara Bo. Her wife blocked the agent's blows with the speed of a lifetime of training. _But to be fair, Alex does it a lot better than most._

Artemis knocked Alex down for the third time. "Come on Danvers, I know you're faster than this!"

Carter's song began to fill Diana's ears.

Uh-oh, running out of breath, but I  
Oh, I, I got stamina  
Uh-oh, running now, I close my eyes  
Well, oh, I got stamina

Diana saw Alexandra grunt and rise again. The brunette attacked her wife on the right. Artemis blocked the blow with her own long Bara Bo and unloaded faster hits against Alex. The agent inclined her head on time and launched a kick that was blocked by her opponent.

Don't give up, I won't give up  
Don't give up, no no no  
Don't give up, I won't give up  
Don't give up, **no no no!**

Her wife's Bara Bo collided with Alex's again. Artemis attacked on the right and Alex blocked. She launched another blow from above and Alex raised the Bo to block again. Alex got her Bo to touch Missy's cheek for a second, but her wife jumped on time.

"I said faster, girl; faster, faster, faster, faster!"

Alex attacked with a new furious force and managed to hit Artemis in her side.

"Good, faster, faster, don't lose your balance!"

I'm free to be the greatest here tonight, the greatest  
The greatest,

the greatest

alive

Diana saw Alex attack faster than she had done all afternoon. _She could definitely be the greatest one day._

The greatest,

the greatest

 ** _alive!_**

Diana smiled when she remembered the conversation she had had with Artemis almost two weeks ago, when they had finally left the hotel to move into an apartment. Lena had wanted to buy them one, an offer that was kindly rejected by both. Diana knew her intentions were good, but experience had taught her that money always messed up any relationship of any kind. And she preferred to sleep on the CatCo roof before risking to ruin the growing relationship she was building with her daughter.

 _"So, I think we chose well. This is our room, I chose it for the window. Is not the view beautiful? I think we could paint the wall a soft orange. What do you think?"_

 _"I think soft orange is fine, yes."_

 _"Missy..."_

 _"Diana, aren't all the colors the same in the dark?"_

 _"You are impossible."_

 _"It's part of my charm... And those two rooms?"_

 _"Oh... I was thinking that one might be for Lena. Um, you know, just in case she ever wants to sleep here. It will need a double bed, so she can share it with Kara."_

 _"I just hope we're not woken at midnight by any moan. Diana, I won't tolerate Supergirl having sex with my daughter under our roof. Ishtar, I can't believe Lena's dating an alien journalist... I was starting to like Kara, being a journalist and everything."_

 _"What's wrong with Supergirl? She's a warrior. "_

 _"No, Princess of Honor, she isn't a warrior. She's a hero, and a very good one. But Supergirl isn't yet a warrior."_

 _"I disagree."_

 _"Of course you do, your moral values are quite similar to hers... And what about the other room?"_

 _"Well, it could be a studio, or a closet, or an armory. We definitely need an armory."_

 _"Let it be another bedroom."_

 _"Another one?"_

 _"We already have one for Lena. This could be for Alexandra."_

 _"For A-? Artemis, don't start again. I told you we aren't going to adopt Alex Danvers. Firstly because she already has a mother, secondly because she is not a little girl, and thirdly because you and she together would end up driving me crazy."_

 _"Fine, it won't need to be a legal adoption. We will do it the old way, with a blood pact."_

 _"Why are you so fascinated with that girl? If I didn't know you are mine forever, I would feel jealous."_

 _"Uff... Honestly, I don't understand how no one notices it."_

 _"Notice what?"_

 _"Alexandra reminds me a little of myself, although she definitely has more patience. Alexandra uses her anger as motivation to grow stronger... She shines, Diana. Everyone pays more attention to Supergirl, but the reality is that Alexandra Danvers is the biggest in the whole city."_

 _"Wow... you have become very fond of that girl."_

 _"I wasn't joking when I said I wanted to adopt her... It would be exciting to be there when Alexandra goes from being the Biggest to the Greatest."_

 _"Honestly, I'm not sure. But I will trust your judgment."_

Don't give up, I won't give up  
Don't give up, no no no

Don't give up, I won't give up  
Don't give up, no no no

Diana watched the girl training while the song ended. She could see part of what Artemis saw, a force so huge it did not seem to fit in her body. _Sometimes she has eyes like a child's, other times she has old eyes. But it's true, I can see greatness in the future of Alexandra Danvers._

The greatest,

the greatest

 ** _alive!_**

Artemis finally knocked Alex down attacking her legs. The younger woman hit her jaw when she fell.

"Your mind is not in this training today, Alexandra." On the floor, Alex clenched her fists. "Is there something you want to share?"

"No." Alex got up and wiped her hands on her pants, not looking at the redhead.

Next to Diana, Carter began picking up his things. The teenager stood up. "I've to go now, Donna. My mom will be home soon and it'll be better if she finds me there. See you soon."

"See you soon, Carter. May the Goddesses be with you."

"What strange things you say sometimes." Carter laughed.

Carter Grant walked away along the stone path. Diana waited for him to disappear from her sight, and then opened her purse. _Well, I hope she likes it._ Diana pulled out a box wrapped in gift wrap.

"Alex?" The agent turned to the brunette. Out of the corner of her eye, Diana saw Artemis nod. "Happy Birthday!"

Alex's angry expression fell like a house of cards. The young woman looked at the gift, at Diana, at Artemis, without getting over her astonishment. _Why is she so surprised that someone wants to give her a gift?_

"How did you know?" She asked at last.

"My Lena mentioned it a couple of days ago." Artemis shrugged. "Does your birthday have anything to do with your bad mood today?"

Alex sighed. "I guess I'm just not having a good birthday." She shrugged. "Kara couldn't have lunch with me because she has some shitty article to write for Fucker Carr." Alex stretched. "J'onn is very nervous lately... My mother said she couldn't come because she has a major conference today." Diana noticed that she clenched her fist lightly. "And Maggie just forgot it." Her lip quivered slightly.

"Perhaps this gift will make your day a little better." Artemis smiled sideways.

Diana watched as Alex blushed a little and pressed her lips together. She hesitantly took the box. "You didn't have to give me anything."

"What do people say these days? 'Bullshit'? Well, that thing. Now open it." Artemis took a swig of water.

Alex unwrapped the gift without breaking the yellow paper. Her fingers slid down the white box with excitement and a little nervousness. Her eyes met Diana's, and she nodded. When Alex opened the box, her eyes widened and her lips parted.

"Welcome to level three, Alexandra." Artemis sat down on the wooden bench.

The silver bracelets were reflected in Alex's dark eyes. The agent held them in their hands like the treasure they were. Her fingers traced its smooth surface. "These are... real?"

"If they weren't, they would not be able to absorb the impact of bullets." Artemis rolled her eyes. "What you have in your hands are bracelets in the style of Themyscira. In Bana-Mighdall they are smaller. At level three, you -and if we are lucky some other people- will learn to use them. Don't kid yourself, Diana and I make it look easy, but it's extremely difficult to be fast enough to know where the bullet is going to hit. It may take years to learn to use them properly."

Alex did not seem to be listening. Instead, she smiled and drew her new bracelets to her chest.

Artemis approached Diana softly enough, that Alex could not hear. "You will have to continue, Diana... something went into my eye..." her wife began rubbing her eyes.

 _And here we have the fierce and dangerous Bana, crying because Alex likes her gift. This woman never ceases to amaze me._

Diana got up and stood in front of Alex. "I hope that you like your gift."

Alex came out of her trance and smiled. "…Of course. It's definitely a gift that can be very useful for me in the future."

 _And this is Alex Danvers, pretending she doesn't want to give us a hug... And this girl continues to amaze me._

"Alex, could you help me with something? I have to meet with an old friend, but I don't know where the address is. Would you mind taking me there?"

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **17:56 PM**

"Oh, Lena, this place is beautiful!"

Kara breathed in the open air of the Country Club. _This place is perfect; it's close enough to the city in case there's any emergency, and it's far enough away to make it a totally relaxing place._ The place was owned by an old business associate of Lena's. _Alex is going to love it! I hope Diana has no problem bringing her here._

"Only the best for my family." Lena's mischievous smile could have melted the North Pole. The brunette took her luggage out of the car.

"C'mon, you two. Tonight's dinner won't cook itself." Maggie grabbed her luggage and walked to the cottage Lena had rented.

A soft breeze caressed Kara's face. _This place is totally beautiful. It looks very relaxing too, just what Alex needs. Oh Rao, is that a water slide!?_ Kara saw some other people swim in a pool in the distance. A couple of kids were sliding on a huge water slide next to a water tank.

The interior of the cottage was as beautiful as the exterior. The wooden house had two floors, a fireplace, a kitchen, a living room and a lovely dining room. Lena had chosen the larger cottage. Kara let out a shriek of emotion and left her luggage on the floor. _It's perfect! Totally perfect! Alex is going to love it!_

Maggie and Lena went directly into the kitchen, talking about the dinner they had to prepare. Kara followed them.

"Potsticker?"

"Kara?" Lena asked, taking an apron.

"You made sure someone picked up Eliza at the airport, didn't you?"

"Of course, Puppy." Lena opened a packet of flour. "I had to send another assistant. Jess hasn't answered the phone in all the morning, I think-..."

"Lena." Kara frowned. "Jess has been on vacation for a week. You forgot it?"

Her girlfriend's eyes widened in dismay.

"You're right, Jess is on vacation. Silly of me, I forgot it."

"You paid for it yourself, remember? A two-week vacation in the Caribbean. You even talked to your cousin Zara to receive her at the best hotel in the city."

"The negotiations with InGen have had me a little busy, Puppy." Lena started pouring water into the flour. "These Scots are a hard nut to crack, their emissary isn't making things easy for me. Last year I forgot my own birthday, and I was just negotiating with Wayne Enterprises." She frowned. "I don't trust the old Bruce, he gives me bad vibes."

"But still, to forget something like that... Aren't you working too hard? Are you okay?"

Lena smiled and her hand touched her medallion. _I don't like this new tic._ "I'm totally fine, I promise."

"Kara, Lena, I don't want to interrupt your so interesting conversation, but we still have many things to do before Eliza arrives. It was already too difficult to hide the surprise from Alex." Maggie Sawyer began to fight to the death with a blender.

"Will Mr. J'onzz come?" Lena asked quickly and returned to concentrating on her pizza.

Kara blinked a couple of times. "Umm, I think so. I know M'gann is going to come, but J'onn has been a little... tense lately, in a rather weird mood."

"Are you sure you're not exaggerating? The man is going to be father, Kara. It's normal for him to be nervous."

"Lena, yesterday he stared at a fixed point for forty minutes. In absolute silence, not moving. Alex was going to shake him when he started laughing! It was creepy!" Kara shuddered at the memory of J'onn _laughing._

"He will overcome it. I would be more worried about your friend M'gann." Lena's cheek was stained with flour. "Pregnant Martians don't get mood swings, do they?"

* * *

 **The Birthday Girl**

 **8:50 PM**

Alex parked Maggie's car in what looked like a country club. _What kind of old friend does Diana have?... Someone might be trying to catch them._ _Amazons or not, you're never too cautious._ Maggie must have infected her with her paranoia.

"Umm, he is a CEO from Gotham I used to know years ago." the brunette replied from the back seat.

 _Just great. There are only two kinds of CEO: nerds like Lena or smartasses like Maxwell Lord. Either way, I'd better have my eyes open._

Artemis squeezed her shoulder. "I figure you are eager to practice with your new bracelets, Alexandra. But I assure you this will not be the night you'll use them for first time." The redhead opened the car door. "Besides, no matter how good you are, the bullets would turn you into cheese if you had to use them now."

Alex and the two Amazons got out of the car and headed toward the club. The place was lit with warm yellow lights, shining all around. Upon entering, Alex saw many people enter a cottage emitting a noisy pop music. _Surely someone is throwing a party, having a better time than I am having on my own birthday._ The agent also could see a pool, around which other families were having dinner. _This place looks like a good place to relax._

Diana advanced toward the largest cottage in the place, a beautiful house made of large logs. _It's very dark in there, something isn't okay_.

"My friend said he would leave the door open for us to go in directly." Diana opened the door to the cottage.

The darkness inside was almost absolute. Alex began stroking her gun under her clothes, while her eyes scrutinized around. Suddenly, the lights went on.

 _""SURPRISE!""_

Kara's hug almost broke her in two. Her sister lifted her in the air and gave her a big kiss on the cheek. Her mother ( _Mom!? She said she wasn't coming_!) was the next to hug her, kissing her on both cheeks. Winn and Lena hugged her together. J'onn was the next to lure her into his arms, looking better than she had seen him for weeks. Alex could smell his cologne of chocolate and mint tea, one of her favorite smells in the world. M'gann gave her a short hug. Finally Alex was face to face with Maggie.

She felt tears flood her eyes. "I thought you had forgotten."

Maggie stood on tiptoes to kiss her cheek. "Never." Alex kissed her smile. "And for the record, my gift to you is a bikini. Tomorrow you can use it for me."

"Tomorrow?"

"This place is ours for the whole weekend." Lena smiled next to Kara and Diana. "You deserve much more than this, Alex."

"If I could, I would give you a magnificent gift like we used to do on Krypton, sister." Kara looked at her with infinite devotion. "I hope you will settle with three kilos of passion fruit ice cream."

"You bought me three kilos of ice cream?!"

"No, I made you three kilos of ice cream." Kara bit her lip and put her hands on her hips. "Your new diet about 'don't eat anything bought' is almost a blasphemy, Alex!"

"You can't imagine how difficult it was to make dinner." Lena pursed her mouth.

"Warriors only eats what they hunt with their own hands." Artemis folded her arms.

"But then how did you make dinner?"

Diana and Maggie shrugged. "The zoo will not notice a couple of goats missing."

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **9:30 PM**

The table looked absolutely gorgeous. Kara felt the emotion bubble in her chest in constant happiness. _We all needed a break. Maggie from the blissful diary in Greek that she carries everywhere, Diana from work, Lena from her stress, J'onn from his apparent existential crisis... Tonight is just for Alex._ Her sister looked so happy that Kara wanted to hug her and not let her go for hours. She was in a conversation with Eliza and Diana, apparently talking about Lena. _Aww, Lena used to throw stones at the royal guards! Some things never change._ Artemis listened to the conversation in silence, playing with the butter knife. Next to Kara, Lena and Winn were having a discussion about Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones. _Oh oh, Winn has said that Galadriel isn't more powerful than Melissandre. I can hear Lena frowning._ Maggie had gone to get more ice in the kitchen.

J'onn was looking at the table, feigning interest. M'gann was looking at her plate without saying a word.

Kara frowned. She could feel that J'onn was tense like a violin string, he had been that way every day since learning about M'gann's pregnancy. _And he always says the same, 'it's just my nerves'._ Kara remembered Lena's wise words. _'I would be more worried about your friend M'gann.'_

At that moment, the White Martian rose softly from her chair. She exchanged a silent look with J'onn and walked towards the garden. No one seemed to notice her absence at the time. Kara wiped her mouth with a napkin and rose from the table to follow her.

Kara saw M'gann come out into the fresh air of the garden. The Martian bent down to take a small box she had brought earlier, which was next to Winn's table games. She sat on the stairs with the box on her knees. "It's rude to spy on people, Kara."

The Kryptonian sighed and went out into the garden, sitting down next to her friend. "What have you got there?"

"A gift for your sister and for you." M'gann opened the box, inside there were at least eight glass bottles. "Alien alcohol, and these two are of that whiskey Alex likes so much. They were mine... but now I won't drink in a long, long time." M'gann gave her the box. "I hate to waste."

"Um, thank you so much, M'gann, really. But I haven't drunk for years. "

"Some bad experience?"

 _Because Lena was trying to quit drinking with all her strength and it didn't seem fair._ "Um, it's complicated."

"Do you think you could drink for me?"

"What?"

"I really want to drink, but I can't. I think I'd feel better if I see someone else drink."

"I really don't think..."

"Please? Just a couple of drinks."

Kara sighed deeply. "Okay, but just a couple of drinks."

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **9:51 PM**

Once Diana and her mother started talking about Lena's beauty marks on her skin, Alex decided it was time to abandon the conversation. _Mothers, they're all the same_. Unfortunately, the conversation between Maggie, Winn and Lena did not interest her enough either.

"They are all dead." Maggie said to an interested Winn and Lena. "Diana's translations revealed some names of those possibly implicated in the matter of the cure. I've been investigating them, and even the last of them is dead. I think…"

 _I think my detective girlfriend needs to be pushed into the pool. Maybe tomorrow._

Her last choice seemed to be J'onn, since Kara and M'gann were not in sight. The Martian she considered a second father was stirring the meat on his plate with a fork.

"Hey, J'onn." Alex squeezed his shoulder. "You look exhausted tonight."

The Martian looked embarrassed for a moment. "I'm sorry, Alex. I don't mean to ruin your birthday. I'm just a little tired, a car hit me this morning."

"A car-...? My God! Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine. I guess I was not looking where I was going." J'onn stared into space. "I also got hit by two bikes, a motorcycle, and a tricycle."

"J'onn, are you...?"

"I'm fine." J'onn stood up from the table. "You enjoy your birthday, you deserve it. I'll go to the bathroom for a moment."

Alex sighed one last time and threaded her hand through her hair. _If he continues like this, he will end up madder than a baptist in a brothel. Where the hell are Kara and M'gann?_ The agent got up from the chair and decided to look for her sister. _I hope she's not eating my cake._

Unfortunately, Alex did not find Kara eating any cake. On leaving to the garden, the agent found a rather... peculiar scene. M'gann seemed to be complaining about something, angry as a childish cartoon. Kara, with her face flushed, was nodding from time to time. _Damn, does she have a bottle in her hands?_ Alex came over.

"I did everything for him, Kara! I fixed the kitchen faucet! I changed the rug in my living room! I removed my 'IT' poster from the wall because he doesn't like clowns! I deserve him thinking about me a little!"

"YES!" Her sister drank from the bottle.

"All I want from him is a little support! Nothing more than that! Is too much to ask!?"

"Yo' deserv' love, Meg! All the love in the woooorld!"

 _She's drunk!_

"M'gann! Kara!" Alex caught their attention. "Are you drinking!? Are you crazy!? M'gann, how could you!? In your state... "

"Shee not drenking, Alex! I'm dreenking for her! Cause I'm heeeer frend, and frends drenk when love faaaails you!"

"What?"

Kara took another drink.

"Kara Zor-El Danvers, I can't believe you got drunk! Give me that bottle right now!... Is that expensive whiskey?"

* * *

 **Artemis of Bana-Mighdall**

 **10:15 PM**

Artemis began to feel bored when Diana and Eliza Danvers began to exchange knowledge about medicinal plants. _Her ability to make friends is admirable_. The Amazon got up from the chair, wondering what Eliza Danvers's face would look like if she suddenly told her: _'I challenge you to a battle to death, and whoever wins will be worthy to eat more cake'_. _It would certainly be interesting._

The good hearing of the Amazon picked up a noise from the garden. Frowning, Artemis went there with a dagger in her hand. However, she put it back on her belt as soon as she saw the Martian screaming as if something had struck her little toe. _Is she crying?_

"BUAAAAAAAA!"

 _Nut's sake..._

"Alex, Kara, it's not fair! I just love him too much! Why can't he love me in the same way!? BUAAAAAA!"

Alexandra tried to take her friend's hand, but instead she took her ear. Kara started to cry as well and hugged her bottle. _They are drunk._

"LOVE SH'LD BE DEF'NDED UNTIL DEATH!" Shouted the reporter.

"You three!" Artemis shouted and they turned to see her. "What the Tartarus do you think you're doing!?"

"Artemis!" Alexandra almost fell. "W-We're not doing anything! We're just... "

"Dr'nking!" Yelled Kara. "Dr'king for M'gann to dro'n her sorllows of love!"

 _Drowning sorrows with drink? Poor thing, she doesn't know that sorrows are overcome by destroying things._

"Com' and d'ink with us!"

"Are you crazy, girl? The three of you are making a fool of yourselves, especially the Martian."

"J'OOOOONN!" The same Martian was crying over Alexandra's jacket.

"Com' and d'ink for love wit' us!"

"NO!"

"I CHAL'NGE YAH!"

"ARE YOU CHALLENGING ME, LITTLE GIRL!?"

"YEAH!"

"FINE!"

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **10:51 PM**

"The diary has brought me loads of interesting facts." said Maggie. "Lillian was experimenting with stem cells when..."

A soft knock on the door interrupted their conversation. Eliza left her conversation with Diana to open the door. Maggie saw that a dark-haired teenager was standing there.

"Yes? Can we help you with something?"

"The brunette dressed in black and the blonde with glasses came with you? They just destroyed my car."

"What?" Eliza looked at him in disbelief. "You must be wrong, my daughters could never..."

"And the woman of color and the redhead shattered another with a bat."

"I repeat, you must be wrong. My daughters could never... "

"Where are Kara and Alex?" Winn asked.

J'onn came downstairs at that moment. "Has anyone seen M'gann? I can't find her."

"Lena, sweetie, did you see Missy?" Diana approached her daughter.

"Oh, shit." Maggie said.

The first to run was Lena. Maggie did not think twice before following the CEO out of the house, praying to God that everything was a mistake and Alex would not have destroyed any cars. _Please, Alex, my wallet couldn't stand the pain._ To her disgrace, the universe hated her and there were not two shattered cars, but four. _Are those marks of fists? Oh, what a relief, it was Kara. It's Lena's business._

Maggie was the first to hear the shrill laughter. Looking up, she found the four agents of disaster sitting in the water tank, legs dangling at the edge. They were laughing so loudly that they seemed about to drown. The serious and until then gentle M'gann M'orzz, the same girl who had served her alcohol in the bar for years, had a bat in her hands and brandished it in the air like a sword.

"ALEXANDRA AND KARA DANVERS!" Eliza shouted.

"HI MOMMY!" Alex shouted.

"POOOTSTICKEEEERS!" Kara shouted. "We'r celeb'ting lov' and I LOVE POTSTICKERS!"

"KARA! Come down from there NOW!" The imperturbable Lena Luthor screamed at her girlfriend.

Diana came running, Maggie saw her face turning red at incredible speed. "AAAAAAARTEEEEEEEMIIIIIIIIS!"

"Hi _*hip*_ Di! This drink that Kara likes _*hip*_ so much is much stronger than normal ones!"

"MAGGIE I LOVE YOU!" Alex stood up in the tank. "MARGARET SAWYER I LOVE YOU! YOU'RE PERFECT FOR ME! LET ME SING A SONG ABOUT HOW PERFECT YOU ARE! **_MAGGIE, YOU ARE PERFECT! YOU ARE PERFECT, OH MAGGIE! MAAAAAGGIE MAGGIE MAGGIE MAGGIE! MAAAAGGIE MAGGIE MAGGIE MAGGIE MAGGIE MAGGIIIIIIIIIIE!_** "

"Diana, my love!" shouted Artemis. "I want to drown in the depths of your eyes! Drink in the beauty of your soul! Spend every second of eternity by your side! LET'S MAKE ANOTHER BABY, DIANA!"

"What's going on!?" J'onn came at last.

Maggie watched Kara stagger as she stood up. "LEDNA L'THOR OF BANACYRA!"

"Please, no..." Lena seemed to want to die.

"Leednaaaaa I lov' you! I LOV' YOU! I LOVE YOU F'OM THE 0.000001 SECOND' AFTAAHR I SAW YOU FOR THE FIRS' TIME! I WANT TO MARUY YOU! AND HAV' SIX CHILD'EN WITH YOU! I WANT THEM TO HAV' YAAR EYES, YAAR HAIR, YAAR CHEEKS, YAAR LIPS, YAAR BOOBS, YAAR ASS! AND MY... LAST NAME! YEAH I JUST WANT MY LAST NAME FOR THEM! YO'RE AS PARFECT LIKE A POTSTICKER!"

"J'ONN J'ONZZ!" M'gann brandished her bat. "I want you to know that I'm totally sober!" she looked at J'onn. "FUCK YOU!"

J'onn advanced and began to climb the water tank.

"FUCK YOU, J'ONZZ! IN THESE THREE WEEKS I HAVE RECEIVED NO WORD OF SUPPORT, NO GESTURE OF CONTAINMENT, NOTHING! DO YOU THINK THIS IS DIFFICULT ONLY FOR YOU, YOU BASTARD!? IT'S MY BLOODY BODY WHO HAS YOUR SON! AND THE ONLY THING YOU DO IS AVOID ME! IF YOU DON'T WANT THIS, YOU COULD SIMPLY BE BRAVE AND..."

J'onn reached the top of the tank and kissed M'gann on the lips. Maggie watched in shock as the people around her began to applaud. In the tank, Kara began to sing a love song. Artemis and Alex started singing 'Fighter'. When the Martians parted, J'onn embraced her. "Of course I want it."

"Then why do you act like I suddenly had a contagious disease?" M'gann returned the hug.

"I was scared. I'm still scared. I'm... terrified."

"I'm scared, too." Maggie heard M'gann say. "But I'd rather be afraid with you than being afraid alone."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize and just get your mind back, okay?"

"Yes." J'onn closed his eyes and rubbed her back. "Agreed."

The beauty of the scene was ruined when Kara began to sing 'I will always love you'. Maggie turned to Diana.

"Diana, please help me get them down there."


	20. Misbehavior

**Interlude (part two).**

 **Where Lena (** **does things without knowing it)** **knows her aunt, and makes a decision that will change her life.**

* * *

 _Lena stared at the damage done to her building from the distance. No doubt it would take weeks to be repaired. Everyone else was busy helping the wounded and moving Doris Zuel to a truck that might well have been a tank._

 _"Miss Luthor." Jess approached the motionless figure of her boss, standing in the street and watching the building. "Are you alright?"_

 _"I'm fine, Jess. Another day, another assassination attempt." The CEO folded her arms._

 _"Miss Luthor, w-what was that?" Jess stammered. "Up there, when that thing... Your medallion... There was a green light and then her hand twitched."_

 _Lena closed her eyes for a few seconds. Her mouth twitched slightly. When she opened her eyes, she offered Jess a quiet smile. "Well, jess, as you will know, it's not strange that Amazons have occult skills."_

 _"B-but that thing..."_

 _"Can you promise me you will not say anything?" Lena, smiling, turned to look at her completely. "I need these things to be kept secret for now from everyone, even Kara. Especially Kara." She approached her secretary. "I need you to promise me that you will keep the secret."_

 _"I... Yes, of course, I didn't mean to imply..."_

 _"Oh Jess, you work so hard and you're so loyal." Lena rubbed her shoulder. "I would like to reward you in some way for everything you do."_

 _"Ah-ah that's not necessary, it's my job, I..."_

 _"I'll give you a vacation." Lena smiled at her. "Yes, a long vacation in the Caribbean is just what you need. Don't worry about the money, I'll pay every penny. Please don't bother to reject, let me show you my gratitude in this way. You will spend a few weeks in the Caribbean and relax. Now, if you'll excuse me, my mom fell from a giant trying to save me. I must go with her now."_

* * *

 _The brunette did not have time to resist before being pushed into the frozen depths of the well. The last thing she saw were two incredibly blue eyes._

 _Lena felt the cold first, then the weight of the water as her body continued to sink deeper and deeper. The water entered her lungs without her being able to avoid it, but far from burn, that water made her chest feel as light as a feather, as if she had no body and was only a spirit. Looking up, the surface of the well had become as small as a moon in the sky, and equally unattainable. **I** **have been thrown into the wolf's mouth and now I must see myself slowly die.**_

 _The arms gripped her torso gently but firmly. Lena felt a long-fingered hand grip her chin so she could not turn her head. The brunette closed her eyes and tried not to surrender to the fear that was shaken in her heart._

 _"Why are you doing this to me?" Lena was not surprised to be able to talk in the water. She believed she could never be surprised anymore._

 _The arms tightened a little further. Lena's chest felt as hard as a rock._

 ** _I am just taking precautions_**

 _The voice that answered her did not speak in any known language. It seemed that Lena had simply heard it in her mind._

 _"Precautions against what?"_

 ** _Against everything that wants to kill you_** _. The hand holding her chin moved to her hair. **Against yourself also.**_

 _"Is that why you make me forget?" Lena felt the overwhelming desire to squirm like a fish in a net. "Jess saw you, she saw you and that's why you sent her away."_

 ** _I could have killed her, too. But I am sure you would not have appreciated it._**

 _"Don't tell me you care what I want."_

 ** _You want what everyone should want. It is in your nature._**

 _"Don't make me forget..."_

 ** _Sorry._** _The arms of stone embraced her back. **But you are the first to live so long**. **I will keep you alive at any price.**_

 _"Why?" The water changed from greenish to slightly golden. "I don't want this. Why?"_

 ** _You are my only gap._** _Its arms let her go. **Now, forget it again.**_

* * *

 _Lena woke with a gasp in the darkness. Her bed was too hot, and a few drops of sweat came down her back when she reached frantically for the bedside table to get her phone. **I can't forget it. I can't forget it. I have to write it down. I have to write it down before I forget it.** She almost dropped her cellphone. **Come on, come on, come on, don't forget it, don't forget it!**_

 _Her fingers began typing at full speed on her cellphone. **That's it, come on**_ **, 'GA-'.**

 _Lena could not finish of write the word when she felt a stitch in her chest. She fell asleep immediately._

* * *

 **Lena Luthor (of Themyscira)**

 **8:42 AM**

Lena heard a loud snoring before she woke up completely. When she did, she realized that the snore had been hers. She had slept in a bad position, causing her neck to ache as she moved. Lena buried her face in the pillow. _I'm screwed. At this hour, what happened last night must be in all the news._ Lena let out a groan of frustration coming from the depths of her soul. _M'gann M'orzz is banned from my house from now on._ She put another pillow over her head as she remembered that there were four destroyed cars. _Maggie's wrong if she thinks I'm going to pay for what Alex did. I'm not a fucking bank._

When the CEO finally removed her head from under the pillow, an object fell to her side. Surprised, the brunette saw that the screen of her cell phone was on. Lena took it and looked at it, finding a note where the word **'GAP'** was written in capital letters. She rubbed her eyes and frowned.

 _What is this? 'Gap'? What…?_ Suddenly, Lena simply felt that it was nothing important _. It must be some joke that Alex did yesterday, after we put her in the car she started texting everyone. I'll delete it now._ Banishing that matter from her mind, Lena deleted the note and got out of bed.

It was hot in her room at Diana's apartment. Lena wiped the sweat from her forehead. _I have to buy her an air conditioner._ She picked up her clothes from the chair where she had left them last night, frowning when she noticed the wrinkles in her blouse _. We had to pack our stuff up too fast._

Lena braced herself to face a new day and left the room. Kara and Alex continued where they had left them last night, snoring comfortably on the couch... more or less. Her girlfriend was hugging a cushion and Alex was hugging a bottle of whisky. _Last night she thought that bottle was her son. ("Maggie, look, this bottle is perfect like you! I'm going to call him Little Sanvers and he'll be our son!")... Well, at least Alex did not hurt anyone._ Her eyes turned to her beloved Kara, who snored furiously, with her blond hair messy. _("Naabady's gain' to touch my wooman! Ledna L'thar of Banacyra is out of yaar league, you jerks!") I hope you get used to sleeping on the couch, Kara Drunk-El, because that's exactly what you'll do when we get back home._

Lena heard a conversation coming from the dining room. Walking down the hall, she saw Diana and Maggie sitting at the table with two cups of coffee, talking to a redheaded woman. At first she thought it was Artemis, but as she approached, she realized that she was not. The woman seemed much older than the Bana, and also smiled and spoke with natural sweetness, qualities that could not be attributed to the Egyptian Amazon.

Diana looked up and saw her. "Oh, here she is. Good morning, sweetie. I hope you slept well."

"For the night we've had, I slept quite well." Lena looked questioningly at Maggie. The detective just shrugged.

"Lena, honey, I want you to meet someone." Diana said smiling. "She is Alexa, Artemis' younger sister."

Lena blinked a couple of times and looked back at the woman. Of course, the resemblance was there, despite Alexa's age and blue eyes. The red-haired woman never stopped smiling at her, her hands resting softly on her lap. _This woman is my aunt, with whom everyone says I used to get along very well._ Alexa got up and stood in front of her.

"I confess I had to come here and see it with my own eyes to believe it." The woman was staring at her face. "But there's no doubt, your face has not changed a bit, Lena. Does it bother you if I give you a hug?"

Lena shook her head and the red-haired woman gave her a short but strong hug. Her eyes met Maggie's, who put her hands to her mouth and spread it at the corners, in a universal gesture that meant _'smile, you idiot'_. Lena tried.

When they separated, Lena sat next to Diana and took a banana from the fruit bowl. Diana wrapped her arm gently around her, as if asking permission. _Wonder Woman shy about a hug, a curious sight._ Lena leaned into the hug, smiling slightly.

"We were talking about last night." Maggie took a sip of coffee, reading something on her cellphone. "Alex and her stupid bottle kept me up late. I swear M'gann must have put something into that whiskey."

"Don't talk about Mr. Sanvers that way." Lena said with a serious face.

"It's not funny, Luthor. I can't wait to break that stupid bottle." Maggie growled. "And it's Little Sanvers."

"Was it really that bad?" Alexa asked.

"My girlfriend said that she wanted six children with my physical characteristics." Lena shrugged.

"And Artemis recited love poems about the beauty of my soul and her love for me."

"Oh my Nut! Like at your wedding?"

"A little worse." Diana pressed the bridge of her nose. "This drink was a lot stronger. Her hangover will be the size of Polyphemus when she wakes up."

"My sister only gets poetic when she's really drunk." Alexa shook her head.

"I don't even want to imagine the news." Lena sighed.

Maggie looked up from her cellphone. "In fact, it looks like we've been lucky. The incident hasn't been linked to you."

"What?" Lena asked in surprise. "That makes no sense. Kara is known as my girlfriend, and many people saw her..."

"People saw a disheveled and very drunk blonde proclaim her love for 'Ledna L'thar of Banacyra'." Maggie pursed her mouth. "At least so far the incident hasn't been linked to you."

 _Oh, what a relief. What a relief._

"I see you have a very interesting life, niece." Alexa rubbed her hands together. "It is a terrible coincidence that someone has declared you eternal love from the heights."

"Coincidence?"

"Oh, yes. On your first birthday, Artemis climbed a waterfall and sang you a song in Banen." Alexa laughed. "I would like to say that she was drunk, but I think she was just very happy."

Lena bit her lip as she smiled.

"She used to do that very often?"

"Sing in Banen? Just for you."

"I know, she told me. I... I mean climbing the waterfall. Or climbing a giant. Was she always so intrepid?"

 _So similar to Alex? Is that why they get along so well?_ Lena bit her cheek. _You're not five, Lena. Nor do you have any right to be jealous._

Alexa leaned forward. "She's the most unpredictable person I know."

"And arrogant." Diana rubbed her shoulder. "During the pregnancy she made my life impossible."

Lena frowned. "How did she get pregnant?"

Diana looked away. "Um, it's... complicated. Honestly, at first I was going to be the one to carry you in my womb. But the people of the man's world would have noticed, my enemies could have discovered it and... It was safer that your other mother carry you."

"What the heck? Did you have a in vitro fertilization?" Maggie raised her eyebrows, looking up from her cellphone.

Diana laughed, in a good mood. "No, Maggie, nothing of that current technology." She looked at Lena. "At no point did I want to form a baby of clay. Being one, I attest that it's not nice to be called 'clay' behind your back."

"Alkyone?" Alexa asked.

"And Persephone, and Myrto, and Akila of Bana-Mighdall... Nothing nice." Diana shrugged. "I was thinking that we could adopt when my mother took me under the island, and confessed to me that she-…"

 ** _*BANG*_** _*Ahhhhhh*_

Lena saw a very disheveled Artemis come out of the main bedroom, massaging her temples between groans of pain. She was bitting her lip hard as she walked as if she had been hit by a truck.

"Wait." Maggie began to record her with her cellphone.

Lena looked at her reproachfully.

"This moment of divine justice has to be recorded, Lena." said the detective simply.

The Egyptian Amazon got to the door, blinking a couple of times at the people at the table. Lena saw her ( _the right word is 'Mom'... come on... you can do it_ ) stop her eyes on the other redhead. Far from being surprised, Artemis managed to raise her eyebrow in the middle of her agony. "You took your time, Alexa."

"I know, I'm sorry." Alexa sighed. "I was home when I found out. Things got a little crazy with Queen Karna and some random hunters on the border. And then I went to Themyscira believing that there would be more information, only to find that nobody there knew anything either."

"My mother doesn't know?" Diana frowned. "I've been sending her homing pigeons for a week."

"They were homing pigeons?... _Oh_." Artemis pursed her lips. "Oops."

"Artemis, what did you do?"

"I may have accidentally eaten them."

Lena saw Diana remain very calm. "...Did you eat my homing pigeons?"

"Warriors only eats what they hunt with their own hands, Diana."

"Did not you see they had messages written on their little paws?" Her eye twitched.

"Is it really necessary to tell your mother? Can we not wait a couple of years? Maybe a decade?" Artemis sat in the other seat next to Lena. The Amazon kissed her cheek and rested her head on the CEO's shoulder, closing her eyes. Lena felt her red hair tickle her nose. "Lena, tell your mother you don't want to meet your grandmother. That woman will suck your vital energy."

Alexa shifted uncomfortably in her chair. "Umm, it may be a bit late for that, sister."

Artemis raised her head so fast that Lena thought she heard a bone creak.

"Did you tell her?"

"Ehh..."

"You told her!"

"What did you want me to do!? _'Hello my Queen, good morning, Lena ins't alive or anything, but Diana has not sent you a message about her_?'."

 _Well, she's right._

Diana squeezed Alexa's shoulder. "It's alright, Alexa, nobody blames you."

"I do."

Alexa ignored her sister. Instead, she focused on Diana and Lena. "After the initial moment of emotion... and believe me, there was a lot, Hippolyta asked me to tell you that she wants you to come back."

The wave of panic crossed Lena's chest so suddenly that she was surprised by her own reaction. No one noticed it except for Maggie, who was looking at her causally. She felt as if someone had punched her in the stomach. Her fist clenched involuntarily.

"Come back?" She and Diana asked at the same time.

"She wants you to tell her in person." Alexa shrugged.

"Oh, what a relief." Diana said. "If I fly there now, I can be back before the night. Tomorrow I have to go and get some Swiss cupcakes for Ms Grant, so I think..."

Alexa interrupted her. "And if it's true, she wants to proclaim five sacred days in honor of Hera, in gratitude for returning Lena to us." Alexa bit her lip. "You would have to stay for five days."

"Sorry, did I hear right?" Maggie interrupted. "Can she force them back if she wants to?"

"I told you this woman was going to suck us of our vital energy."

"No, it's not like that." Diana looked at them seriously, taking Lena's hand. "Of course she can't force us to go back, and we will not be going back. However, if a sacred party is organized in honor of a Goddess, unfortunately we can't miss it. It would be sacrilege."

"And why is it so important?" Lena asked, perhaps a little sharper than usual.

Artemis put a lock of her black hair behind her ear. "We are talking about the same Gods who turned Arachne into a spider just because she wove better than them. Hermes almost destroyed my city years ago. I don't like it, but we can't afford to offend them in any way."

"Can you not come with us?" Diana's face brightened. "We would not have to part and you could meet your grandmother and our sisters. Would you like it, Maggie? It has been a long time since we received visitors from the outside world, I bet... "

"I'm sorry, but I can't." Lena said quietly. _Calm. Calm._ "I'm in the middle of important negotiations that could be vital in the growth of L-Corp. I can't go away for five days."

Lena did not feel well when she saw a twinge of disappointment cross Diana's blue eyes. But as always, the Amazon only smiled with understanding. "Of course, that's fine. Don't worry, I will explain it to my mother. It will only be five days and we will be back. We can all go together another time."

 _Stupid heart, stop hurting. Stupid Maggie Sawyer, stop looking at me like that._

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Ms...?"

"Hunt." Alexa smiled a little. "I prefer to use a surname like the women of man's world."

"It was a pleasure, Ms Hunt. But I'm afraid I have to say goodbye. I have to go to my house and take a shower, and then go to work."

"On Sunday?" Maggie folded her arms.

"As I said before, I'm in the middle of important negotiations." Lena got up from the chair. "When Kara wakes up, tell her to call me, please."

Lena advanced toward the door, not daring to look back at any moment.

* * *

 **The woman who works on Sunday**

 **10:15 AM**

Lena really did not need to go to L-Corp on Sunday, but after Alexa mentioned that Diana and Artemis would have to go back for a few days, her heart squeezed in such a way that she needed to be alone to think. The morning light warmed her office, causing the CEO to remove her spiked jacket and set it neatly on a chair.

 _'It's always better to think in an office.'_ her brother's memory said. Lena could only agree with him. _You used to think too much in an office and you became crazy and genocidal._

Lena opened the folders in front of her, about Yotsuba and their recent interest in genetic engineering. _The sharks smell the blood, they also want to buy InGen... And it seems that Umbrella is also interested... None of them is competition, but Wayne Enterprises is going to give me a good fight. That old man is really a pain in the neck._

Lena picked up the phone and called her replacement assistant. "Andrea, bring me the files 6-23 of section 45. They are the ones in a green folder."

"Of course, Ms Luthor."

Ten seconds passed and Andrea came through the door with the files in her hand. _Wow, that was fast._ Ms Sachs left the files in front of her, smiling professionally.

"Can I help you with something else?"

Lena blinked in astonishment. "No, not for now, Andrea. It's enough that you have to be here on Sunday."

"Oh, Ms Luthor, you're really too kind." The brunette smiled. "My previous boss would have told me ' _you should have come sooner, Emily_ ' and then sent me to buy coffee and bring it in less than four minutes or... Oh, I'm so sorry, you're working. Excuse me. I'll go back to my desk."

Andrea Sachs left the office quickly. _Am I the only CEO who treats her employees with a little courtesy? Am I doing things right?_

Lena was going to go back to work when she felt a gust of wind come in through the window. _She has taken her time._ Placing a paperweight on her documents, the brunette turned to meet a Supergirl a little more shaky than normal. It was obvious that the blonde still had a killer hangover. _She seems about to fall to the floor._

"Hey." Kara almost tripped as she approached. "Lena…"

"I'm afraid you're making a mistake. The office of Ledna L'thar of Banacyra is on the left. "

"Oh, Lena, I'm so sorry!" The brunette noticed that Kara had a small envelope in her hands. "I didn't want things to get out of control, but it's that M'gann looked so sad and she couldn't drink and she really has great persuasive skills and I swear I didn't want to cause you problems I...!"

"Kara, slow down." Lena got up from her chair and helped Supergirl take a seat. The Kryptonian slumped onto the couch with a loud **_*puff*_**. "Slow down, you still have a hangover."

"I'm sorry."

"You have to take deep, long breaths or your headache will get worse." Lena poured a glass of water. "Here, drinking water will help. An expert on hangovers tells you."

"I'm sorry, Lena."

"It's okay."

"No, it's not okay, I ..."

"Kara." The brunette woman took her face. "It's okay," she said sincerely. "That I had a drinking problem doesn't mean that you can't drink. I don't want you to give up anything for me. However, I would rather you don't go around drunkenly screaming for the world to hear... and that you don't destroy cars."

She watched Kara blink in confusion. "Aren't you mad?"

Lena came over and leaned her head on her shoulder. "Before I was, now... now I need a hug."

Supergirl wrapped her arms around her immediately, resting her cheek on Lena's forehead. The brunette felt her long fingers tracing circles on her back. "What's wrong?"

"...They have to return to Themyscira for a couple of days." Lena swallowed hard. "Did they tell you when you woke up?"

"I think Diana mentioned it while trying to take Alex off her bottle, yeah. I wasn't paying attention. I could only think that maybe I had caused you problems." Kara raised her hand to fix the glasses she did not have. "What's the problem? We can go with them if we want. Actually I have the perfect excuse: I can tell Carr that I'll do an article about the Amazons and how they live. "

"I can't, Kara. My job…"

"Lena, your vice president is more than capable of taking over for a few days." Supergirl looked at her as if she were a little girl. Still in the midst of a hangover, Lena was surprised that her look was so wise. "What's the real reason you don't want to go?"

Lena climbed into the heroine's lap, seeking to feel loved like a little girl after a nightmare. The brunette sighed. "It's all so cliché, Kara... Sometimes I feel like I've found a missing piece of my life... And sometimes I don't even know who I am." Lena felt a kiss on her forehead. "This month and a half has been by far the most exciting in my life. And it has not been because I'm a Luthor, it has been because I'm... an..."

"An Amazon?"

"I don't know if I want to be an Amazon, Kara." Lena hid her face in the blonde's neck. "I want to have a family, but I don't know if I want to be an Amazon."

"My little Potsticker, no one asks you to be something you don't want to be." Kara kissed her forehead again. "The important thing is who you decide to be: this wonderful and strong woman, with the biggest heart I know. Lena, your last name has never mattered and will never matter. You're Lena Luthor Zor-El of Themyscira, and the world is a more beautiful place because you live in it. No matter what last name you use, just be Lena."

Lena felt her heart flutter in her chest. _You always know what to say._ "Zor-El?"

"We'd be considered an old couple if we were on Krypton." Kara laughed.

 _You miss your world so much, and here I'm doubting about mine. I should be ashamed of myself._

"Maybe this will help." Kara pulled out the paper envelope she had previously held in her hands. Lena looked at it curiously. "It's a bit old now, but that's fine. That way you'll know that things haven't really changed much... you've always been special."

"What is this?"

"Remember the day the tamaranean attacked you? How upset were you because people linked you to Lillian's crimes?"

Lena frowned, remembering the not so distant times where the shadow of her last name was drowning her.

"Some assholes threw eggs at my car, yes."

"I asked Winn to help me make this video." Kara put it in her hands. "It was a surprise to you. Our plan was to upload it to the internet so millions of people would see it, but then the tamaranean... and Diana... and Metropolis... And the last thing you needed was more public attention. Besides, it was on my laptop and the fire almost ruined it. I thought I could use it now to apologize." Kara scratched her head nervously. "But I want you to see it anyway, Love."

Lena watched the CD for a few seconds, not knowing what to think about the fact that Kara and Winn had kept a secret from her for almost a month. _Look at it first, then decide whether you should be angry or not_. The CEO got up, looked for her laptop, and sat down next to Supergirl again.

She could feel Kara surrounding her with her arm as the video played. On the screen of her laptop, Supergirl was sitting on a wooden bench, facing the camera.

"We didn't get to edit it much." Kara said to her side.

 _*'Is the camera on, Winn?'*_ In the video, Supergirl had a confused expression. _*'Yeah, I know I shouldn't say your name. Just delete it later. Can I start now?... Okay, here I go...'*_ Supergirl looked seriously at the camera _. *'People from National City and the world, this is Supergirl from the planet Krypton. I'm speaking to you on the occasion of the gossip and suspicions that are currently befalling Lena Luthor. It is well known that my family and hers have maintained a war that has shaken the country for a long time. That both Lex and Lillian Luthor have committed horrible crimes against both humans and aliens. But during the moment of truth, when my friends and I didn't have a way out, the person who saved our lives was Lena Luthor.'*_ Supergirl took a deep breath _._

 _*"She committed the greatest act of valor that can exist: deciding to do the right thing, even against the people we love. Lena chose to be different from her family. And that act of valor should not be rewarded with the infamous treatment she is receiving from the media nowadays. Is this how acts of good should be rewarded? Not at all. Ms Luthor deserves better than that.'*_ Supergirl got to her feet.

 _*'I understand that suspicions against her surname aren't easy to overcome. But if my word is worth something, then you have to know this: I trust Lena Luthor. And I know from the bottom of my heart that she will not betray that trust. Maybe if you give her a chance, you might know it too. She has chosen to make National City her home so she can do good things for the people of the world. As a citizen of this city, it makes me feel privileged. And also immensely proud.*_ Supergirl smiled a little.

 _*'I want you to know that we are not 'a Super and a Luthor working together', we are Me and Lena working together to make the world a better place. And that's all that counts for me... And cut, Winn! Do you think it went well? I hope Lena likes it... Oh my Rao. look what time it is! I have a very important interview in an hour!... No, Winn, it's not George RR Martin. Oh! Please delete that last part, I think...'*_

"Well, I guess that's all." Beside her, Kara closed the laptop. "As I said before, it lacked a lot of editing, but... Lena?"

Lena let out a sob.

"Oh, it was too much! I'm sorry! I didn't want to…"

The brunette collided against the blonde, wrapping her arms around her neck as the sobs came out of her throat, without being able to control them. Lena felt her cheeks moist and a sharp pain in her chest. Kara wrapped her arms around her waist, tracing circles on her hip, kissing her shoulder.

"Y-You made a mistake." Lena murmured.

"A mistake?"

"You said National City was my home. And that's a lie, Kara. I've never had a home until I met you." Lena rubbed her nose against the blue material. "You're my home; the only reward I want. I don't want any thing else. I only want you."

"Baby, easy. Don't cry, easy." Kara began stroking her hair. "You're my home too, Lena. _Khap zhao rrip_ , promise me you'll never forget it."

"I promise." Lena wiped her tears.

"And if our home is the people we love... How about we make our home bigger?" Kara caressed her cheek. "Maybe two thousand times bigger? I don't know, how many Amazons does the island have?"

Lena laughed and her lips remained in a smile. "Almost three thousand." She sighed. "It's ok, I'll do it."

"Let's go to Themyscira, Potsticker?"

"Let's go to Themyscira, Puppy." Lena kissed her nose. "I'm going to call Diana and tell her that..."

"Call her later." Kara wrapped her arms around her again, rubbing her waist. "Now I want to hold you a little longer. I just discovered that's good for my hangover."

* * *

 **?**

 **17:20 PM**

 _"I had my suspicions... But their disaster yesterday has already made it clear. M'gann M'orzz is pregnant."_

 _The shoulders tightened. "Just great... Just what we needed now: another one."_

 _"Is it really a problem? It's no different than any other damn routine situation. We just have to wait."_

 _"No, we can't 'just wait'. This gap is too close to the girl. Our subtlety isn't being useful... I think we will have no choice but to stop being subtle... If you still want your man, don't take your eye off the White Martian either. We will have to..."_

 _"There's something else."_

 _"Spit it out."_

 _"They will go to Themiscyra... I heard it this morning. It seems that Le- that the girl will go with them... Why are you looking at me like that? We could..."_

 _"The Tamaranean we found a year ago is in good health, right? Go and prepare her."_

 _"Did you not hear me? I said that..."_

 _"I told you to go and prepare the Tamaranean." The hands rested on the desk. 'Get lead too, a lot of lead." There was a sigh. "And call Olivia Marsdin."_


	21. Meet the Amazons

**No reviews last chapter :( :( Ahhh**

* * *

 **Lena Luthor (of Themyscira)**

 **11:11 AM**

The bright sunlight reflected in Lena's eyes as she drove to the airport. The brunette had to turn on the air conditioner to survive the heat. Kara, of course, did not have that problem. _She looks fresh like a flower doing photosynthesis._ Her girlfriend was in the sea next to hert, talking to Winn, who was explaining the new functioning of her cellphones.

"They can receive calls. Maybe the sound won't be very good, but that's the best I could do considering that place is practically Ancient Greece and there's no electricity." Winn shuddered in horror. "In case of an emergency, Kara, it's a forty-minute flight at full speed from Themyscira to here."

"It would have to be an apocalyptic emergency if J'onn and Mon-El wouldn't be able to solve it together."

"How will you explain the absence of Supergirl?" Lena asked.

"It cost me my weight in Oreos, but J'onn agreed to pretend to be me a couple of times." Kara yawned. "What about the battery, Winn?"

"Take care of it like water in the desert." Winn pressed a couple of buttons on Kara's cellphone. "And that goes for you too, Princess Leia. Your resistance will be tested in this survival test. "

"Winn, it's only five days without working." Lena sighed. "I'm totally fine with that."

Her girlfriend and her best friend stared at her.

"I'm serious." Lena wrinkled her nose. "Masrani has instructions to call me only in case of emergency."

"I think it would be better if you're the one who keeps the cellphones, Kara."

"Your faith in me is moving, Winn." Lena rolled her eyes.

"Lena, if you spend five days without touching your cellphone I personally will disguise myself as Gandalf and I'll admit that Galadriel is better than Melissandre."

"You don't have to admit anything, because she is." Lena lifted her chin, looking sideways, making Kara shake her head.

 **The woman about to travel**

 **11:57 AM**

Lena, Kara and Winn found Alex and Maggie on the airport runway. Alex Danvers wore white and blue instead of black, and she was talking to J'onn J'onzz. _He looks like another person, he's much happier than the last time._ Maggie wore a pair of sunglasses and was talking to someone on her cellphone.

 _"Cragen has given me a vacation, Olivia. You and Elliot will have to go ahead with the case of Barty Crouch. The evidence that he killed his father is circumstantial, but we can still find firm evidence. If you have another question, ask now, I won't be available in the next five days... "_

Her girlfriend hugged her sister for a long time, both with excited smiles on their faces. Lena was very happy to see that. _They're happy for a decision I made_. Her eyes fell on Winn, who smiled sadly at the excitement of the two sisters.

"I wish you could come with us." Lena said, sighing. "It won't be the same without you."

"It's okay. Anyway, tomorrow there will be a Chronicles of Narnia marathon."

"Narnia?" Lena frowned. "Those books are terrible."

"But the movies are pretty good."

"I'll bring you a present. Would you like an Amazon sword or an autograph from the Queen?"

Winn laughed, his gaze lighting up for a second.

"Do you think you can bring me Medusa's head, Wonder Girl? It would be very useful against the paparazzi." Winn smiled and wrapped her in a tight embrace. "Enjoy it, Lena. Don't hesitate, just enjoy it."

 _I don't understand why nobody sees how special you are, Winn. Honestly, I don't understand._

"That's the plan." Lena laughed. "After all, I'll be far from all the things that cause me stress: paparazzi, work, monsters trying to kill me, Cat Grant..."

Winn's eyes widened in terror, staring at a fixed spot behind Lena.

"What's wrong?" Lena turned around.

The brunette found an image out of her nightmares. _No no no no no no no no no no_. Cat Grant was advancing toward them, with sunglasses on her face and a large handbag.

"Well, if everyone is here already, let's not waste time and let's go." said the older woman.

 _AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!_

When Kara saw her former boss, her face lit up and she ran to give her a hug.

 _AH! AH! AH! AH! AH! AH! AH! AH! AH! AH! AH! AH! AH! AH! AH!_

"Cat! :D What are you doing here? Are you going to come with us?"

"Who do you think owns the plane, Kiera? Donna couldn't carry you all in her arms. I lent her my plane in exchange for an interview with the Queen. Opportunities are falling from the sky lately."

 _Asjaamsizmdjkzmadksmadmskamad_

At her side, Winn sighed deeply. "Okay, this doesn't have to be a bad thing. Just- _Lena, are you foaming at the mouth?"_

* * *

 **Diana of Themyscira**

 **1:50 PM**

Diana was very happy to know how to fly a plane. Of course, it was not the same as flying free like a bird, feeling the wind in her hair and adrenaline in her chest, just like a kiss from Artemis or a smile from Lena. _But definitely flying a plane also has its charm._ Beside her, Ms Grant watched the sky with a smile on her lips.

"Thank you once again for letting us use your plane."

"Donna, do you have any idea how much my interview with The Queen of Themyscira will sell?" Cat said softly. "You shouldn't say 'thank you' when the two sides take advantage of the situation, Donna." _Why does she keep calling me 'Donna'? She knows that I'm Diana of Themyscira since the incident with Giganta._ "I've interviewed seven Queens from around the world, and the old singer from 'Queen' as well. But none of them could be compared to your mother."

"Maybe it's best if I go with you when you do that, Ms Grant." Diana pressed the button for the seatbelt sign, so all the passengers would know that it was safe to take them off. "Almost six hundred years have passed since my mother left the island for the last time. I don't think she even knows what an interview is. She may feel a bit puzzled at first."

Cat pursed her lips. "It won't be necessary, Donna. I'm quite sure that I can handle it on my own. Millennial Queen or not, I'm the Media Mogul and there's nothing I can't achieve."

 _Her self-confidence is admirable, I think she's right. I just hope she didn't ask my mother about her love affair with Ares. The last person who did that lost an ear._

"It's a pity you can't stay for more than a day, Ms Grant."

"Oh, Donna, I appreciate the invitation, but even all the lost islands aren't worth missing Carter's birthday." Cat smiled. "Kara is the one who is going to continue the story after I leave. I have full confidence that she will do it well. I should have left her in charge of my empire, not that incompetent of Olsen. Besides, I think your daughter will feel much more relaxed with my absence."

Diana laughed. _That's absurd_. "That makes no sense. My Lena is a strong woman like you. Why would not she like you?"

"Oh my God, all superheroes are the same." Cat grunted.

"Same? What do you mean?"

"Nothing, Donna." Cat replied, pursing her lips.

Diana did not dare continue. She was brave but not suicidal.

Cat stayed by her side for another half hour, after which she got up from the chair and stepped out of the cockpit. Diana thought she would do the rest of the trip alone, but five minutes later she was pleasantly surprised when she saw Lena walk in the door, her hair down and a magazine in her hand.

"It's too hot in here."

 _Some things never change_. Diana smiled. "The sun is quite strong at this time of day. In about twenty minutes the temperature will drop. Why are you here and not back with the air conditioning?"

"Ms Grant and _my Kara_ are planning the interview and the story." Lena took the seat next to her. Her lips parted as if she was going to say something else, but she did not. "They're talking about journalist stuff. Alex and Maggie are sharing headphones and Artemis is taking a nap, so I decided to take a look around here."

"Well, things are quiet here. I thought you wouldn't want to come her;, there's a wider view of the horizon here"

"I guess I don't mind seeing the horizon if I can't look down." Lena opened the magazine in her lap. "I know it's the safest way to travel, but I really hate flying. Not even Kara has been able to take away my aversion." Her daughter sighed and rested her cheek on her hand. "How do you know how to fly a plane?"

"A friend of mine was a war pilot." Diana smiled. "His name was Steve Trevor. He was a good man, he taught me to do many things: to fly planes, to change the engine of a car, to open a bottle of beer, and he told me what a secretary was..." she sighed. "He was a good friend. He would have liked you."

"Did you not know what a secretary was?"

"I thought they were a some kind of slaves. No one else was benevolent enough to correct me."

"Well... technically a secretary is a kind of slave." Lena smiled. "How much time before we get to Themyscira?"

"Almost an hour and a half, my Sun and Stars. We will be there before you notice it." Diana checked the controls again.

"And is Bana-Mighdall much further away? Maybe we could go there too at some point."

 _('How else could they have taken Lena away in the middle of the night, Diana? We aren't talking about your sisters, we are talking about Banas. One of my sisters betrayed us.')_

"Diana?"

"I think it would be better not to go Bana-Mighdall for now." Diana sighed. "Artemis and I have been thinking, sweetie, and we think... we think maybe Lillian might have had an accomplice between your mom's sisters. Someone who helped her to get you out of the city. A traitor."

Diana could only see her for a moment, but Lena's face hardened like stone. In her lap, her hand tightened.

"I promise I'll find her if there is one, Lena." Diana took her hand. "After the five sacred days are over, I'll talk to Alexa to start investigating. Everything will have to be done in a subtle way, honey... or we could provoke another war. And that leads me to the need to ask you something."

"What is it about?" Her voice sounded a little colder. Diana tried to ignore that.

"Don't mention the Bana-Mighdall traitor to my mother, Lena." Diana sighed. "It wasn't easy to get peace with them. It cost us a war and many lives. My wedding with your mom was the first step toward the fragile peace we have now. And knowing my mother, she would be able to start another war instantly." She took a deep breath. "And this is also important. Tell her... Tell her Lillian is dead. She wouldn't understand why we have forgiven her life. "

"You're asking me to lie."

"Yes, I'm asking you to lie. I'm not proud to do it, but..."

"You forget that I'm a businesswoman. My world is full of lies and appearances."

Diana tightened her hold on the control, perhaps too hard. _That's the world in which Lillian raised you. I want to give you something better, my Sun and Stars, but we can't afford another war. I don't even know if we can trust Queen Karna._

"I'm sorry, Lena."

"Don't be." Lena sighed. "I will, only because I think it will be the best. I don't know your mother, but you almost killed her and she has an army. And I can't let anyone hurt Lillian. "

 _Why do you defend the person who ruined our lives? Why, Lena?_

Diana took ten seconds in silence to control the anger and sadness in her heart. _Time and patience, Diana. Don't forget what J'onn said, 'you have all the time in the world'. If you want Lena to have it too, then these five days are vital._

"Lena, do you want me to teach you how to fly a plane?"

Her normally serious and professional face turned into an expression of terror. "Now? With passengers on board? Of course not!"

"Oh, come on! You're a smart girl, you will do well. I will be here by your side at all time. Look, this screen here shows you the state of the turbines... Here is the fuel. These buttons here are for asking for help with radio signals, in case of emergency. Do you want to fly the plane?... Hold a little more tightly, sweetie... That's good! You see, Lena? You are flying! You are doing great, keep it up..."

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **3:10 PM**

Kara was looking out the window of the plane, listening to Cat talk about all the important points they planned to cover in their visit to Themyscira. Her former boss had made a list. _Or maybe she ordered Diana to make a list. After all, who knows Themyscira's key points better than she?_

"And don't forget to research their summer outfits." Cat took off her second pair of glasses. Suddenly, she frowned. "But what am I saying? It's summer all year long on that island. Forget what I said. Instead, I think readers would be more interested in knowing what those women do for fun. I can't imagine anything worse than being in a single place for thousands of years." Cat sighed. "Why so quiet, Kiera?"

Out of the corner of her eye, Kara saw Alex and Maggie sharing headphones and dozing relaxed.

"I guess I'm just thinking."

"I don't even want to imagine what kind of thoughts dwell in your head, but I'm going to take the risk. What are you thinking?" Cat asked looking at her cellphone, as she used to do when she wanted to feign disinterest.

"I don't know... The world. How big the world is." Kara sighed.

"And how it never cease to amaze us?"

"And how it never ceases to amaze us."

 _I wonder if there's a Themyscira in Barry's Earth. I wonder if things are different there. Perhaps the Lena of that world was never separated from her family, and lives happily and freely and loved... I wonder what would have happened if she had never been kidnapped. Would we have met? Would we have fallen in love?_

"You know, Cat? I never thanked you for the advice you gave me." Kara smiled.

"Which one?" She was still looking at her cellphone.

"That one of 'throw yourself into the river'. Of be many people at the same time. If you hadn't told me that, I wouldn't have had the courage to become a journalist."

"You would have had it." Cat looked up from her cellphone and smiled a little. "Only that it would have taken you longer to decide, and in life the better one doesn't win, Kiera, the faster one does."

"You're right." Kara fixed her glasses. "That advice also helped me have the guts to be with Lena... Thanks for everything you always do for me, Cat. I wish I could give you back some of what _\- I know!_ When I have a daughter I'm going to name her after you! You imagine? Cat Danvers-Luthor!"

"Oh for God's sake Kiera, **_no_**."

Kara looked out the window again, and then she saw it. A magnificent island in the distance, with the sun falling on it and bathing it with golden lights. Kara could see beautiful white and blue buildings, houses in the hills, a beautiful castle in the center. She could also see tiny distant spots fishing in the sea, going up the hill, moving around the island. _Themyscira_.

"We're already here."

* * *

 **The Princess of Themyscira**

 **3:35 PM**

It was like daydreaming.

The pure air, the warmth on her skin, the sound of nature coexisting in harmony with humanity. The beauty, a beauty so big that Lena could not have described it even if she was forced to do so. Sh heard someone say 'wow', maybe Alex. She was not sure. She only knew that a door in her mind and heart had just been opened and she was about to fall inside.

Lena saw a pair of women fishing in the distance. She saw others training with swords a few yards away. A couple of brunettes were playing in the water. Looking up at the mountain, she saw a group of at least five women climbing.

She felt Kara's hand tighten around hers as they entered the city. _It's like being in '300'._ The buildings looked all steady and beautiful, despite being thousands of years old. The stone paths were branched out in all directions, connecting the whole island like the veins of a living being. In the distance, Lena saw the shape of a gigantic circular building. _It can't be, they have a coliseum!?_

The Amazons were everywhere, watching them with their millennial curious eyes. Lena saw many of them smile as they passed, some of them waving their hands in their direction, but no one spoke to them.

"Why don't they come near? Are they shy?" Kara asked beside her.

"The Queen has to give you her go-ahead first." Artemis yawned. "After that you will be received as guests. Oh, but don't mention Hippolyta's affair with Ares, or she can order her Guard to cut off an ear from you."

"Damn." Cat erased that question from her list.

The Palace was the second largest building, only surpassed by the Coliseum. Lena felt her chest tighten slightly when she felt the first recognition. _I remember this place, I lived here_. The columns were golden instead of white, and on the ceiling faces were carved in stone. These images could only be the Goddesses of the Amazons.

"It's this way." Diana said, turning to the left of the Palace.

The seven of them walked along a stone path for three minutes, arriving behind the palace, where the most beautiful flower garden Lena had ever seen was.

The brunette, however, felt a pang of sadness. _Lex would have loved this garden._

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **4:09 PM**

Much to Maggie's surprise, they found the Amazon Queen with her knees on the ground, wearing a simple tunic and planting roses of a blood-red color.

Diana moved toward her. "Mother."

The Queen turned and her face lit up immediately. Maggie noticed that she did not have a single wrinkle, nor was there a single gray strand in her sandy blond hair. "My Sun and Stars." She let out an exclamation of surprise as she saw the five foreign women. "Is it true what Alexa told me, Diana? Lena..."

Diana put both hands on her shoulders and nodded with a smile. Maggie looked at Lena at that moment. The CEO took Kara's hand tightly, caressing her thumb and breathing deeply. _She looks like a woman about to give birth._

Queen Hippolyta looked at them with a charming smile. Maggie thought that smile might well have broken a couple of hearts during thousands of years. _Lena's grandmother looks as young as we do._ "Hera has given us back my granddaughter. I never thought anything like that would ever happen." She advanced...

...but to the horror of everyone she hugged Alex.

Maggie felt a red alarm go on in her head. Her girlfriend's eyes widened so much that they seemed about to fall. Kara's mouth was open. Diana looked like a fish drowning in the sand. Lena's face _(oh fucking shit)_ suffered a curious spasm for a moment: as if she wanted to open her mouth and bite her lip at the same time.

"You look healthy and strong as a Fury, Lena. I still can not believe this is true."

"I'm…"

"Oh Dear, it is okay if emotion has taken your words away. You will have time enough to tell me your- "

 _"I'm not Lena." "Hippolyta, she's not Lena." "Mother, she's not Lena."_ Alex, Artemis and Diana said at the same time.

The Amazon Queen let Alex go and stepped back. "Is not she…? Oh, Merciful Hera, my sincerest apologies, young...? "

"Alex Danvers."

"I apologize from the bottom of my heart, Alex of Danvers."

Diana took her mother's hand, surely to avoid another disaster.

"She's Lena."

Maggie never thought she would see a Luthor smile nervously, like a fifteen year-old girl, not the self-assured woman she knew. _This hasn't started well._ Hippolyta smiled again. "You are beautiful as an Aphrodite's nymph, Lena."

Kara smiled a little. "She's also smart as... um, Athena's owl?"

"I am glad to hear. Who are you?"

"She's my girlfriend." Lena regained confidence.

"What is a 'girlfriend'?" Hippolyta frowned. "Is it some kind of partner-in-arms?"

"Um, no." Kara blinked a couple of times. "It means we're in love."

"Oh, you're her suitor."

"No, she's not my suitor." Lena said softly. "It means we're in a relationship."

"Then she's your wife."

Kara blushed like an erupting volcano. "No no no no, we aren't married!"

"I see, you are her lover. What is that curious artifact you have on your face, young lady?" The Queen did not wait for the answer despite having asked the question. "Lena, let me look at you."

Hippolyta put both hands on Lena's shoulders, rubbing them gently. Maggie could not see Lena's face.

"Beautiful. Totally and absolutely beautiful." Hippolyta smiled and touched her cheek. "Your absence was the most difficult blow we had to endure, both for your mother and for me. I hope that whoever has separated you from us has suffered the punishment due according to the laws of the Gods."

"She has." Lena said, looking into her eyes. "Lillian Luthor has been executed for what she did."

"Was she thrown from a cliff?"

Maggie watched Lena using her fake smile. "Diana and Artemis threw her off a cliff, yes."

 _Why does the face of the Queen have that expression? Has she perceived that it's a lie?_ But soon the Queen smiled again. _Lena's grandmother is a rather strange woman._

"That is good... Because you are finally home." Hippolyta kissed her forehead. "An Amazon can not be destroyed by any traitor." Hippolyta embraced her again. "You are finally at home, Lena."

 _Yeah, I just hope that's a good thing._

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **5:33 PM**

The Amazons spoke loudly in the Throne Room. There were so many people inside that Alex was lucky to see the front door. She and Maggie were standing in the front row, receiving permanent looks of curiosity. Some had spoken to them, welcoming them to the island and offering to be their guides to tour the place. Alex would have wanted to refuse to be guided by a stranger, but Maggie thought that would be rude and forced her to accept.

"We can come up with some excuse later, Alex. We're foreigners on their island, it'd be better they don't think people from the outside are rude." Maggie took her arm.

Alex looked at as many faces as she could. There were blondes, brunettes, bald women, and a couple of redheads, all talking to each other in a loud voice. Some were looking at them with blatant curiosity. _They don't look different from normal women. And yet one could kill twenty men with her own hands._

From the distance she saw Artemis making her way to them. The redhead had changed clothes, now wearing Amazon clothes: brown trousers and a black top, with some iron bracelets on her arms. Her hair was also tied in a ponytail too tight.

"She's almost ready." she said when she reached them. "She insisted that Kara be with her at all times. She's good hiding it, but I can tell she's nervous."

"Diana is going to be with her too?" Alex asked.

"Right on the other side." The redhead smiled.

Alex noticed a couple of Amazons looking at her with astonishment on their faces. "I feel like a circus phenomenon."

"They look at you with fascination and curiosity, Alexandra. They haven't seen a woman from Man's World for four hundred years."

Alex saw other women staring at Maggie. "Maggie, I think those Amazons from there look at you with suspicion."

"In fact, they are looking at her with desire, Alexandra. Maggie looks exotic and they want to mate with her."

"What!?"

Artemis was about to reply, but suddenly there was silence in the room. Queen Hippolyta and her royal guards appeared in front of the Throne. She was dressed in the most beautiful blue dress Alex had ever seen. A huge diamond crown adorned her sand-like blond hair, and her eyes were so shiny that they looked like a strange new color. _Are her eyes violet?_

Lena was at her side, taking her hand. Alex barely recognized her. Her sister's girlfriend had bright, freshly washed hair, and wore a simple white dress that contrasted visibly with that of her grandmother's. Kara and Diana were at her side, her sister wearing a blue version of Lena's dress and Diana in her Wonder Woman suit. Kara looked at Lena as if she were dying to hug her. Diana's gaze met Alex's.

The Queen smiled and it was as if a second sun came out in the room. "My sisters, my people, it is with the utmost pleasure of my heart that I confirm that the rumors were true. My granddaughter is not only alive, but is here among us. Hera has guided her way and has returned her home, where she belongs... "

Alex's gaze met Lena's. _God, she seems about to run away_. Alex tried to offer her a reassuring smile, but the CEO looked away.

"As a token of gratitude to the Goddess who cares for us and protects us, I proclaim five Sacred Days dedicated to the honor of Her name." Hippolyta looked at Lena. "And we're also going to welcome my granddaughter after thirty eternal years. Let me introduce you all to your princess, Le-"

 ** _*PLANG *_**

All heads turned toward the door. There, at least about seven dark-skinned women entered the room. Their mocking smiles contrasted with the calm expressions of the other Amazons. Alex felt a chill run down her spine.

Artemis groaned.

One of the women, the one who looked like the oldest of all, despite having stone-hard muscles, advanced forward. Her gray hair was very short and pointing in every direction. The woman looked around with a smirk. "Oi Oi Oi, Hippolyta. Did not you think to invite us to the party? Not every day the dead rise, you know? That was incredibly rude."

"Akila." Hippolyta's smile faded. "I think I remember that Lena has nothing to do with Bana-Mighdall royalty."

"And what does that matter? The girl is half Bana." Akila looked at Lena, examining her from top to bottom. "Well, more or less. The Man's World surely made the poor creature weak. However, if the girl is a bit like Artemis, she will prove me wrong. What do you say, girl? Am I wrong?"

"I haven't the slightest idea who you are." Lena answered in an icy voice. "But I assure you that I'm far from weak."

"Mhmm..." Akila smiled. "I see that Isis has been benevolent and your precious granddaughter is more Bana than Themyscirian, Hippolyta." Akila laughed. "Give thanks to your Goddesses, girl. The Banas have a lot more fun."

 _The traitor. The traitor was a Bana._

In front of them, Alex saw her sister and Diana lose all the color in their faces.


	22. Home Sweet Home?

**Lena (Luthor) of Themiscyra**

 **6.02 PM**

Kara was holding her right hand and Diana her left when they stormed into the bedroom. Both released her and rushed to pick up Kara and Lena's belongings, which had not even been out of the suitcases for two hours. Lena watched as Kara collected her many notebooks and colored pens. Diana took four pairs of shoes and pushed them into the bag, cursing out loud when they did not fit inside. Kara tried to remove the beautiful blue dress and almost tore it.

"Rao's shit, I can't take this thing off!"

"Kara, where are the cellphones!?"

"Diana, can I tear this dress? I think it's stuck!"

"This closure doesn't work, for Hera's sake, where Tartarus..."

Lena cleared her throat. Kara and Diana interrupted what they were doing and looked at her.

"What do you think you're doing?'

 _""What 'what are we doing'? We're packing!""_

"I've to go and tell Alex to pack her things..."

"I have to make sure Artemis changes her clothes, we have to..."

 _Enough._ "We won't go anywhere."

"WHAT?!" Kara stopped trying to take off her dress without tearing it and Diana almost dropped the suitcase.

" _Oh my R-_ Lena, weren't you there a moment ago!?"

"Lena of Themiscyra, WHAT did you say!?"

"BANAS, Lena! That means DANGER! That means 'My potsticker must go!'."

"Lena, tell me I have heard wrong and you don't plan to stay. We will be back another time when there are no Ba-..."

"I said we aren't going anywhere."

Kara and Diana looked at her as if she were a boar dancing the tango.

Diana took a deep breath. "Lena, honey, do you remember what I told you about Bana-Mighdall?"

"Of course." Lena tried to make sure her voice and face were totally serious. "It's no longer necessary to go to Bana-Mighdall, Bana-Mighdall has come to us. And it seems with that, a lot of doubts about me."

"Sweetie..."

"Amazon or not, running away isn't my style."

"Merciful Hera, Lena, the traitor could be among them!"

"I agree with Diana." Kara sighed. Lena noticed that her fist was tight. "Sorry, Lena, but your safety..."

"I had doubts at first." Lena interrupted Kara. "But I haven't spent three hours on this island and I'm sure of one thing: here the only thing worse than a traitor is a coward, isn't it, Diana?"

Lena watched her grit her teeth. "Yes, it is. It's lucky you aren't an Amazon yet, and we can get you out of here with some excuse."

"What about that thing of ' _don't offend the Goddess_ '?"

"That was before you were in danger! They can turn me into an ant if they want, I'll get you out of here as soon as possible!"

"That wouldn't be diplomatic. Don't you think the Banas might suspect if I'm leaving immediately after they arrive?" Lena replied quietly.

Kara flushed with frustration. When she spoke, it was with Supergirl's voice. "Lena, baby, I love you and I'll always support you in whatever decision you make... in the future, now we must go home."

"No."

It seemed that both Kara and Diana were going to tie her and take her flying to National City when Lena heard a soft knock on the open door. When she turned, Queen Hippolyta was standing there, watching them with such a calm expression that it could only be false. Her violet eyes locked on Diana, as the corner of her mouth crumpled for less than a second. "Why this sudden aversion to our Egyptian sisters, Diana? You are always the first to defend them."

"Akila has insulted my daughter."

The Queen pursed her lips. "And Lena defended herself very well on her own, I think."

"Even so..."

"Come with me, Diana. You and I need to have a private conversation."

 _It seems that my grandmother doesn't consider me worthy to hear what she has to say._

The Queen turned without bothering to make sure Diana followed her. Lena saw that the other brunette's fist was white from the force of her tightening. Diana stopped for two seconds beside her before following her mother.

"I already lost you once. I won't lose you again."

"I'm sorry, but I won't change my mind."

Diana looked at her for an eternity, and left the room. Lena met Kara's gaze, a mixture of irritation with her ever-present concern. The afternoon light streamed through their bedroom window, giving her golden hair a supernatural look.

"Lena, we can't..."

"No, Kara." Lena sat on the bed. "I'm not going to leave now."

"You have nothing to prove to anyone."

 _Yes, yes I have. When Hippolyta met Alex, she immediately embraced her and said that she looked 'healthy and strong as a Fury'. Instead, I'm 'beautiful' as a bloody useless nymph. Of course I have something to prove, Puppy._

"I won't go anywhere."

"Lena... "

"I know you want to protect me, Kara. I know you're afraid someone will try to hurt me, I know it's because you love me and I love you, too." Lena got out of bed. "But nothing on this earth is going to make me run away with my tail between my legs. I have to stay here, with or without your approval."

"I disagree."

"I understand, but I need you to trust me, Kara, _please_."

"I trust you, Potsticker." Her gaze softened. "Who I don't trust is all who could try to hurt you."

 **Diana of Themiscyra.**

 **6.10 PM**

Diana felt like a little girl all the way to her mother's private chambers. _She shouldn't notice that I'm nervous or she's going to sense that something isn't right. She can't know that Lillian is still alive._ The Queen entered through the silver doors of her room. The interior was the same as always: her enormous bed, the wicker couch, the mirrors in the corner, the little oak cabinets against the opposite wall, and the gold washbasin in front of the mirrors. Her mother advanced and sat on the wicker couch, only then agreeing to look at her.

"Alright, what is going on, Diana?"

She looked into her eyes. "What do you mean?"

"By Athena's feet, Diana, are you trying to lie to me? You have the same look you used to have when you stole my strawberries from the kitchen to eat them by yourself. I let it go because you were only two hundred years old and you were just a girl."

"I'm not a little girl now." Diana said softly. "So please don't talk to me like a little girl."

"Then so be it, I will talk to you like an adult." Hippolyta straightened her shoulders. "What is wrong with Lena?"

"Why do you think something's wrong with her?"

" _'Diana and Artemis threw her off a cliff'_. She calls you by your name, as if you were her friend and not her mother. Where on earth have you seen something like that?"

"You forget she spent thirty years calling the woman who took her away from her family and gave her a miserable life 'mother'." Diana sat down opposite her. "It's completely natural that she wants to go slow. It doesn't bother me that she calls me 'Diana' for now, she's already been brave enough to come here, so far away from all the life she knows."

The Queen sighed and put a hand on her temple. "You did not look very excited that she met the Banas."

 _Careful, Diana_. "I wanted to wait a little and take her to Bana-Mighdall some other time. You will agree with me that it's easier to fit in here first and then..."

"Does Lena know about her birth?" Her mother interrupted. "Does she know about the daggers?"

Diana sighed loudly. "I had a chance a few days ago, but I didn't take it. I was planning to do it soon but..."

"Diana, Lena will never be an Amazon if you keep treating her like a porcelain doll."

"Oh for Hera's sake, I know!" Diana put both hands over her eyes and pulled her hair in complete frustration. "I'll tell her tomorrow, fine?"

 _Bloody Tartarus, I can already imagine the conversation. 'Lena, sweetie, you aren't only an Amazon, you're also the product of the power of two blessed daggers! Isn't that wonderful? Who needs men?'_ Diana took a deep breath. To her surprise, she felt her mother's hand take hers.

"I know you are afraid of losing her."

"I'm not afraid." she whispered. "I'm terrified."

"I have to ask you something else, but I need you to be calm."

"I'm calm." lied Diana.

Her mother pursed her lips, then asked Diana the question she had been dreading for a month and a half. "You have not spoken to her about immortality, have you?"

 _And here we are, just in the heart of my worries._ Diana looked down at her hands, gently rubbing her knuckles. "I still can't do that."

"My daughter, I understand that you want to take your time, but don't forget that Lena already has... What? Thirty-two years? If you wait much longer to make her immortal, your daughter would look older than you."

"It's not just about her." Diana rubbed her thumbs. "When we met, Lena had already built a family with Kara..."

"The girl with the strange artifacts on her face?"

"They're called glasses." She sighed. "Lena loves that woman with all her heart, I've taken my time to know her well: she's strong and brave, even if she doesn't look very intrepid at first sight. Lena would never do anything that could separate her from Kara. And Kara would do nothing that could separate her from her sister. And her sister, Alex Danvers...

"...Is she in love too?"

"As if Eros himself had hit her in the head." Diana bit her lip. "It's not only Lena whom I have to convince to take the Blessing, Mother, it's the four of them: she, Kara, Alexandra and Margaret. Artemis practically adopted Alexandra, I think she would be happy."

Her mother opened her eyes, bewildered. "Do you want all Lena's friends to take the Blessing too?"

"They are people of honor, they would be magnificent Amazons." Diana smiled. "I just need a little time to convince them that they would be happy being immortal, that we could all be a family, that's why these five days are perhaps the most important I've had in a long time, Mother."

"Are you sure they are worthy of the Blessing of the Gods?" Her mother asked, tapping her finger on the chair.

"They are. They are Lena's family, there's nothing on this earth that could separate her from them, nor is that my intention." She smiled at her. "And nothing would make me happier than not having to worry about watching them die."

"The Gods took your daughter and gave you back four." Hippolyta smiled a little. "Well, my daughter, if that makes you happy and gets Lena to stop growing old, we will 'adopt' the other three, but are you totally sure? Does that wife of yours agree?"

"It was practically Missy who gave me the idea. You will see, Maggie's wisdom and experience are immense for someone her age. You already met Alex, how did you describe her? Oh, yes, healthy and strong as a Fury. Oh, oh; and Kara is so brave and strong and loves Lena so much! We could make a great team and defend the world together! And she has lost her home, she could find a new one here. Don't you think...?

"I think you have to go back to them now." Hippolyta smiled. "You win, My Sun and Stars."

"Will you give them the Blessing?"

"Well, if I gave it to Artemis..."

"Mother..."

Both were interrupted by a soft knocking on the door. The Queen regained her serious countenance, but not before winking at her daughter.

"Enter."

Diana saw the blind Philomela enter. As always, a bandage covered her eyes on her pale face, but she had a bow on her back instead of a sword.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, my Queen." said the royal guard. "But the woman who came with the Princesses requests a hearing with her Majesty."

"Which of them?"

"The one with the sweet voice." said Philomela. "The one that calls herself 'Media Mogul'."

"Cat."

Her mother looked at her in confusion.

"No, not a real cat. Cat Grant is the most honorable woman in Man's World, with her own hands she has built a world empire. I have entered her service."

"Wow." Her mother looked at her in astonishment. "And what does this Empress 'Cat' need?"

"She just wants to ask you some questions."

"What kind of questions?"

"About life here, about your life, maybe about my childhood or something. Can you talk to her, please? That woman is the reason I've found Lena, she's here as my guest of honor."

"You should have said it earlier, my dear." Her mother turned to the blind guard. "Philomela, make The Empress Cat pass."

 **Artemis of Bana-Mighdall**

 **6.19 PM**

Artemis hurried out of the Palace, her vision cloudy with anger and her fist tightened. _I'm going to feed the tigers with her eyes and the lions with her entrails._ Her fury only increased when she found Akila in the worst possible place, with Alexandra and Maggie Sawyer on the outskirts of the Palace. A group of at least fifteen women were crowding around them. Artemis pulled them away.

"...I'm just saying that your toy is totally useless here. Are you afraid of the fearsome Amazons, girl?" Akila said with her arms folded.

"Useless, eh? Why don't I shoot you and find out?"

"Alex..."

"Stand behind me, Maggie."

Akila laughed. "What a curious sight are the women from Man's World and their useless toys."

"Akila!" Artemis approached the Shim'Tar with furious steps.

The other Bana smiled in delight. "Hey, Artie! Long time! You haven't changed an..."

The punch impacted her face in the middle of the sentence, swift as a snake's bite. Artemis felt the pain of one of her nails breaking. Akila staggered but did not fall. Her Bana sister spat blood and saliva.

"You can't imagine how lucky you are that I don't want to fight."

"What the Tartarus was that circus!?" Artemis knew she had broken her finger when she felt a pang of pain. "What the Tartarus, Akila!?"

"The rumors said that immortality had made you so slow in understanding, like a Themiscyrian. My heart suffers to see that it's true."

Artemis tried to pounce at her blood sister, only to find herself being caught by the strong arms of at least four young Banas. She was going to shake them off like flies when she saw a blue and white spot swiftly advance to help her and begin to fight with a brunette Amazon. Her heart sank.

"Alexandra, _no_!"

She knew that the girl was not going to listen to her, so she shook off the six young Banas violently and hurried away to separate the brunette Amazon from the Agent. Artemis took the young Amazon's hair and tossed her away from Alex, pushing her against the other six. The Banas were going to throw themselves on both when Akila spoke.

"Enough." said the older Bana. "Stop fighting them, we haven't come for that."

"She's tried to attack our Shim'Tar."

"I said enough, Amara." Akila grunted.

The Banas stared at them, not moving. Artemis gave them an equally fierce glare after quickly making sure that Alexandra was not hurt.

"I saw the body with my own eyes, Artemis." Akila said seriously. "You seem to have forgotten that you were in Bana-Mighdall when your daughter died."

"That wasn't Lena." the redhead replied as a mantra.

"That wasn't your Lena, fine, does that change the fact that you haven't been home for thirty years?" Akila folded her arms. "If you had never left home this wouldn't have happened. You're not the first Bana who lost a child, Artemis, and yet in Themiscyra that pain made you mourn a wrong corpse for thirty years."

Artemis stood firm, just in case it was necessary to fight again. _If that happens, I have to make sure Alexandra doesn't try to help me. She'll only hurt herself if she thinks she has a chance against an Amazon._

"What did you come for, Akila?"

"I came to make sure the girl doesn't forget she's half Bana, sister." Akila came over to meet her eyes. Artemis could count every wrinkle and new scar on her face. "I came to see if we could make her a warrior in spite of her miserable life in Man's World. And I came to check what I already knew thirty years ago: Diana was going to destroy you."

"I challenge you to say that again. Even your puppies won't be able to stop me from tearing out your tongue."

Artemis heard Alexandra grunt.

"If you're done, I suggest you go back to where you came from."

"What curious people your new friends are." Akila looked at Alex and Maggie. "This one has the eyes of a snake about to bite you, and the other is small but her body language says she's ready to attack." Akila sighed. "We retire for now, Artemis. It's been a long trip and we still have to set up a camp. You know where to find us if you ever remember who you really are."

Akila made a sign to her sisters, and they all retired together, giving them furious, savage glances. Artemis did not lower her guard until she saw them disappear beyond the temple of Athena and inside the jungle. When she finally relaxed her fists, she looked at Maggie and Alexandra. The detective had an indecipherable expression on her face, as if her brain was working at full speed to create a plan of action. Alexandra's lip was cut from her fight with that Bana. _Oh Alex, what am I going to do with you? You know you couldn't beat an Amazon and you tried to help me anyway._

"Come on, you two, we have to heal that lip."

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **At night**

Kara's first day on Themiscyra had been interesting, to put it one way. _Stressful would be the right word._ The possible threat that had separated her girlfriend from her family was a jungle away, and her sister had already gotten into a fight with them. _Both have gone crazy, Lena deciding to stay and Alex getting into an Amazon fight like that! Rao's shit, she could have hurt herself!_ Kara was frustrated; very frustrated and confused. And when something was not right, Cat usually always had the answer.

Kara found her sitting at a table in the rose garden, with a pair of glasses on her face and several papers around her, lit by candlelight. The older woman seemed to be thinking of something very good when Kara arrived, since a small smile adorned her face and her hand tapped a pencil against the table.

"Cat?"

Her former boss stepped out of her thoughts and smiled gently at her. _Is she smiling at me?_

"Is something wrong, Kara?"

 _'Kara'? What? D:_

"Um, no, everything's okay, I just thought maybe we could talk a little bit, since you're leaving early tomorrow and maybe you don't have time, but if you're busy..."

"I can write the interview at home." Cat picked up all her papers and put them in her purse. "You don't visit a beautiful lost island every day. This garden is quite acceptable. You want to take a walk?"

"Of course!" Kara smiled.

Cat started walking among the white roses, and Kara followed her quickly. The Kryptonian gazed at every flower, every green leaf, marveling at the rich beauty of the place. _In Krypton flowers had become extinct a long time ago._

"How did it go with the Queen?" Kara asked.

"Queen Hippolyta is a... rather interesting woman." That strange smile returned. "She's as charming as any Queen, but unlike the others I have met, her smile was sincere. She received me splendidly and answered all my questions, even the annoyances."

"You didn't ask about Ares, did you?"

"Of course not, Kiera, I just asked her what she thought was the worst way to die. She replied with drowning." Cat closed her eyes. "I was called 'Empress Cat' all through the interview, I like the way it sounds, people here have a lot of imagination."

Kara smiled a little.

"Why do you have that face, Kiera? It's like Leonardo DiCaprio's after losing his third Oscar."

"Um, I don't know, it's just that I'm... worried." Kara folded her arms.

"Worried about Lara?"

"It's Lena."

"It's natural that she's tense. Not every day you find out that your grandmother looks as beautiful as a television actress."

"It's not about that, it's about the other Amazons." Kara bit her lip. "I don't trust them, Cat. They could try..."

"To hurt her?"

"Yes, exactly. I told her we should go and come back another time, but she won't listen to me, she's determined to stay."

"That's good. "

"Good?" Kara stopped beside some yellow roses. "No! It's not good! She could get hurt!"

"Kara, your main concern is always to protect your loved ones." Cat crossed her arms. "That's a primordial instinct and you are fortunate enough to be able to protect them from almost any misfortune. But there comes a certain time when people get tired of being protected."

"But... "

"She's dating Supergirl." Cat came over. "Her mother is Wonder Woman, her other mother is a creepy redhead, her social circle includes your sister Dana Scully and her girlfriend Nancy Drew, she wants to prove she can be strong too."

"But she doesn't need to prove anything! I know she's strong!"

"But it's not about you, Kiera."

"Cat, I can't stand it." Kara removed her glasses, feeling the need to be herself at the moment. "I can't stand the thought of someone hurting her, either physically or emotionally."

"Kara, you can't stop people from getting hurt."

"But... "

"But you can be there with her if that happens." Cat rubbed her shoulder. "And help her get up if she falls."

Kara rubbed her wet eye. "I love her with everything I have."

"That's obvious, Kiera." Cat smiled. "Now take off that kicked-up puppy face and let's keep walking, I think that's the Temple of Aphrodite, I'm not going to leave here without visiting it first."


	23. Day One: Sharp

**The following Amazons belong to DC Comics, none have been created by me. (You do not need to create anything when DC has incredible characters)**

* * *

 **Nota dos: muchachos, hablo español xD. Si tengo algún error, haganmelo saber. Tamién, tara loca, no es necesario que te frías la cabeza traduciendo los reviews, puedes dejarlos en español :)**

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **9:10 PM**

The first thing Maggie felt was the sunlight coming in through the window and warming her bare shoulder. The heat of the morning spread through her body and was introduced under her skin, reaching even the smallest place of her person. A groan of satisfaction escaped her mouth as she felt herself filled with the pleasurable warmth.

The second thing Maggie felt was Alex tracing light, almost playful circles on her back. Alex's hand was cold on contact with her warm skin. Maggie could imagine the smile on her face, the gleam in her closed eyes. _Someone's happy this morning._ The other woman's hand began to descend down her back...

And the third thing Maggie felt was a shout.

" ** _Good Morning!"_**

Alex took her gun from the nightstand and aimed at the intruder. Maggie tried to cover her body with the sheet.

"No no no wait don't shoot! I'm not very good with my bracelets!"

There, Maggie found a girl who could not have been more than sixteen years old, with her brown hair combed back into a neat ponytail and wearing a brown tunic. The girl was looking at Alex's gun with complete terror on her face. She raised her hands in a gesture of self-protection.

"Who are you!?" shouted Alex at her side, not lowering the weapon.

"M-My name is Io, the blacksmith. The Queen sent me to help you in all you could need." Io looked at Alex pleadingly. "Please, Lady Of Danvers, don't hurt me..."

"Alex." Maggie lowered Alex's arm softly.

"She slipped into our room! And ruined my morning sex!"

"Your...? Ooh! You were going to mate!" Io opened her mouth in amazement. "I'm so sorry! I didn't want to interrupt. I can come back after you mate. Or I can wait here if you want, I promise not to look!" Io covered her eyes with her hand. "You see? No problem, you can mate now."

Maggie and Alex exchanged a look of disbelief.

"What did you say was your name?" Maggie asked.

"I'm Io! Io, the blacksmith! The Queen Hippolyta..."

"You don't have to repeat that part." Alex said curtly. "Thanks for the offer, Io, but we don't need help with anything. You can retire."

"I really can't, Lady Of Danvers. I swore to the Queen I was going to obey and follow her until death, and she ordered me to help you in everything you need! Would you like a walk around the island? Or to take a trip to the mountain? Oh, oh, I know! Don't you need a new sword or a knife or a bow or a helmet or a...? "

"Maggie, give me my gun."

"No."

"...or a dagger or a shield or an ax or a..."

"Maggie..."

"No."

"I can make any kind of weapon you ask me!" exclaimed the millennial girl, smiling broadly. "And I can do it in no time! It's past nine, if I start now I can finish... "

"Past nine!? Damn!" Alex said, pouncing out of bed at incredible speed. She almost stumbled as she searched for her clothes. "I knew I should have gotten one of those wristwatches!"

"Alex, where're you going!?" Maggie dodged a sock.

"Today, I'm going to practice with the bracelets for the first time!" Alex looked at her, and her smile could have made the sun look ridiculous. "The Amazons said at nine. I've fallen asleep..."

Maggie smiled at the almost infantile emotion of her girlfriend, usually mature and serious.

"And what are you waiting for? Go and show them what you're made of. I'll catch up with you later."

Alex took her face in her hands and kissed her smiling.

"Aww, I love kisses! Well, no one never kissed me, but I love kisses!" The blacksmith smiled.

Alex broke the kiss and looked at he,r irritated. "We told you we don't need your..."

"Alex, you're late, go!" exclaimed Maggie.

She watched as her girlfriend took her silver bracelets from the dresser and ran out the door. Maggie kept smiling until Alex was out of sight. _Everyone will fall at your feet, Alex, as I have._

Io the Blacksmith played with her thumbs. "Um, so you don't need a sword or something?"

"For now I don't need a sword." Maggie got up and started looking for her clothes. _With Alex busy, I can do what I have to do._ "But I do need help with something."

"That's great! Well, no, I mean, um, it's great because I'm going to help you! You just tell me, Lady Maggie! What can I do for you?"

Maggie bit her lip. "Take me to the Banas' camp."

* * *

 **Lena (Luthor) of Themyscira**

 **9:40**

The morning light was beautiful in Themyscira. It was not warm yet, and Lena and Kara had decided they wanted to go out and explore around them a little. Kara had been fascinated by the east beach, where the Amazons threw the fishing nets. Lena was watching her girlfriend talk excitedly to a brunette named Penelope, asking for details about their skill with the nets, and what kind of fish it was possible to get at that time of year. _I don't understand how this will be useful for her story_. Kara did not seem to want to leave the fisherwomen soon, so Lena decided she could explore a little on her own. _Maybe this way I can think of a way to earn the respect of all these people in five days._

That's how the brunette began to walk aimlessly, watching the beauty of the buildings and white houses distractedly. She came to a part of the island where the stone streets were a little narrower. _There are so many things I can do here. I can ride on those white horses that Amazon is feeding. I haven't ridden a horse since I was eleven, when Lex fell off and Lillian forbade us to get closer to an equine aga-… Didn't Diana say there was a library around here? Maybe I should take a look, to know the history of this place a bit._

Lena was surprised that there were just few Amazons in the street _. Maybe they sleep late_. As she turned on a street, she saw a short-haired blonde sitting on the steps of a house, and headed toward her. Lena felt curiosity when she realized that the Amazon was doing nothing, she was just sitting there.

"Excuse me, good morning."

"Good morning, Princess."

 _I'm starting to hate that word._

Lena smiled politely. "Do you know the way to the Library?"

"Of course." The blonde smiled and narrowed her eyes. "Keep going down the street and turn left after the stable."

"Thank you...?"

"My name is Persephone, Your Majesty."

"And what are you doing sitting here, Persephone?"

"Nothing special." The Amazon stirred her hair a little. Lena noticed that she had a very large scar on her right cheek, which had been hidden before by her blond hair. "I'm just enjoying the sun."

Lena shrugged and went on her way. She reached the stable and turned to the left, walking for three more minutes in almost complete silence, only disturbed by the sounds of the jungle. _The library should be around here. Where is everybody?_

A nearby ovation was her response.

Feeling curious, Lena made her way there with hurried steps. The ovation had come from a group of at least sixty Amazons sitting on the stands of what looked like a small football stadium.

They were watching twenty of their sisters training in the stadium. There, the Amazons were practicing with their bracelets, repelling arrows that were heading toward them at full speed.

"Princess!" someone said. When she looked up the stands, Lena saw a woman with golden curls and a square jaw waving her hand in her direction. "Here!"

Lena hesitated for a couple of seconds before climbing into the stands, and sitting down beside her.

"Good morning, Princess. I hope you slept well."

"I have, thank you very much... who do I have the pleasure to talk to?"

"I'm Menalippe, the oracle of the island." The woman smiled. "But unfortunately the Gods haven't spoken to me for centuries."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"Oh Princess, don't be. The Gods never say anything good." The woman shrugged. "Your mother loves this training. Can you see her there?"

Lena watched the stadium, paying attention to each of the moving figures. She had only seen Diana or Artemis repelling bullets a couple of times. _But with arrows it's different, it looks more elegant._ Her eyes met the red-haired woman in the distance, shooting arrows like the Goddess from which her name came. Unfortunately, the Amazon she was training with did not seem to be very skillful with the bracelets. _Maybe it's because of that helmet she uses. Although I don't think she should take it off, her eyes could..._

The woman took off her helmet, revealing that she wasn't an Amazon. Lena watched as Alex ran a hand through her hair.

"Not bad for her first try, don't you think? No doubt Artemis will make her improve." Menalippe said to her side. "It's a strange sight to see your mother get along with someone other than Diana, Princess. She was always a lone wolf."

Lena watched as Artemis rubbed Alex's shoulder.

"Are not you glad she found a friend?"

"I just remembered that I have to meet my girlfriend."

"Girlfriend?" Menalippe raised her eyebrows. "Is that some kind of partner-in-arms?"

"Exactly."

Lena got up and hurried out of the stadium. Her heart was racing hard and a few drops of cold sweat came down her back. _You're acting like the jealous bitch you never wanted to be. Enough already, Alex isn't only Kara's sister, she's your friend also. She rescued you from those paparazzi. She climbed a giant to save you... she and Artemis._ She bit her lip hard. _It seems like that's my karma. Lillian loving Lex more than me, and Artemis preferring Alex over me._

 _I'm tired of being the second option._

Without abandoning her depressing thoughts, the CEO continued walking, entering Queen Hippolyta's wide rose garden. Lena looked up and noticed the yellow roses next to a small Eros statue. The scent was delicious, richer than the most expensive perfume she had ever bought. The brunette reached out a hand to touch the statue, marveling at the soft texture of the marble.

 _*Tap tap tap tap*_

Lena heard multiple footsteps approaching her. Turning, she saw Diana walking in her direction, accompanied by a curious group of women. One of them was a pale brunette with a bandage covering her eyes ( _a blind Amazon?_ ). The second was a blond woman with dark eyes, and a huge bow on her back. The third Amazon had dark skin and a relaxed face, although her eyes stopped quickly at every corner. The last Amazon was bald, with three scars ruining her face, but with beautiful aquamarine eyes and a playful smile on her lips.

"Lena." Diana smiled. "Good morning, sweetie."

"Good morning." said the younger brunette, trying to smile. Diana raised an eyebrow ( _has she noticed?)_

"Let me introduce you to the royal guards." Diana said with a soft smile. "They are Philomela..."

The blind woman nodded.

"...Myrto..."

The blonde amazon with the huge bow smiled softly.

"...Charis ..."

"I hope you don't put an arrow on my seat again, Princess." The woman joked.

"...And Alkyone."

The bald woman smiled softly.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Lena said politely.

"Meet again, Princess." said Alkyone. "Amazons never spend too much time away from home."

"No one here has forgotten you, even if you don't remember us." said the blind woman.

Diana looked at Lena softly, with that look that seemed to erase every problem in the world. "Sisters, our hike has lasted up to this point. My daughter and I will continue alone for the rest of the way."

* * *

 **The Foreigner**

 **12:34 PM**

Maggie chose simple clothes to go through the jungle, clothes that would not disturb her if she had to get dirty suddenly. _As if I had to fight with a panther, or crawl through a cave... or run away from the Banas_. Of course, her fear of the Egyptian Amazons would be much less if the little Io stopped babbling how much she feared them.

"Great Hera, Lady Maggie! We really shouldn't be doing this!" said her guide as they walked through the jungle. "The Banas are all wild ones without remedy!... Um, I suppose Artemis is fine..."

"Io..."

"...although she once called me 'Insufferable Fly' and locked me in a closet..."

"Io." said Maggie, and the little Amazon finally closed her mouth. "I appreciate your concern..."

"Oh, Lady Maggie, you're too kind! You're also the first person who doesn't yell at me within the first two hours. You're too kind for those Banas! Let's go back to the city, please!"

"...But I have to talk to the Banas."

Maggie jumped a fallen log, following the little Amazon closely.

"Lady Maggie, I beg you, think better of it. Banas don't like foreigners!"

"Just because they think they're weak." Maggie replied, feigning more security than she actually felt. "If I show them that I'm not weak as they think, and trust me when I tell you that I'm not, they may agree to talk with me."

"Why would anyone want to talk to the Banas?"

"My job is to talk to people." Maggie noticed that the trees were becoming scarce.

"Even with the people nobody wants to talk to?"

"Especially those people."

The first thing she heard was a laugh. Maggie and Io reached a waterfall of crystal clear water, where the fearsome Banas were playing in the water like little girls. It seemed that the youngest were playfighting, raised on the shoulders of their older sisters. Some of them were at the top of the waterfall, jumping ( _jumping!_ ) from at least thirty feet high and submerging into the water between laughter and shouts.

"Are they playing?" Maggie said in astonishment. _What did you expect, Sawyer? That they were torturing animals or something?_

Io wrinkled her nose a little. "They're so noisy when they play..."

Maggie saw Akila at the top of the waterfall, watching the other Banas play with a smile. The Shim'Tar looked up in her direction, and Maggie knew that she and her companion had been seen. Akila advanced to the edge of the waterfall ( _she can't jump; her age...)_ and the detective watched with amazement at the older Amazon following impulse and jumping. Akila made four elegant turns in the air and dived with a **_SPLASH!_** Maggie watched her swim toward them like a shark.

Akila pulled her head out of the water. "Enjoying a walk, little one? You got lost?"

"Lady Maggie isn't little! Her kindness is too great for your presence!" said Io, wrinkling her nose.

 _Damn it, Io. Shut up._

Akila of Bana-Mighdall came out of the water, fixing her disastrous hair. "I'm talking to the foreign woman, not to you, insect."

Maggie noticed that the other Banas had stopped playing and watched them in silence. _Calm down, Sawyer._

"My name is Maggie Sawyer." She took a step forward, ignoring Io's alarmed look.

Akila smiled sideways. "You have a curious name, Maggie of Sawyer. Why do you bother to tell me it?"

"Because I want to stay here." Maggie ignored Io's gasp and concentrated on Akila's serious face. "I want you to let me spend time with you and your Amazons."

Akila simply raised her eyebrow. "Well, this is unexpected. Why the Tartarus do you want that? You're Diana's friend."

"Diana is married to a Bana."

"Artie hasn't been home for thirty years. Immortality ended up turning her useless." Akila folded her arms. "I warned her that not even all the love in the world was worth it when it comes to protecting your soul, but she was blind and chose Diana anyway. I wonder if she already realized what she sacrificed."

 _This is interesting. Jealousy, perhaps. I've got a bad feeling about Akila._

"I want to stay with you, observe you to be exact."

"You want to 'observe us'?" Akila narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "Why on earth would you want to do something like that?"

"My job at home is to use my strength to catch criminals." said Maggie calmly. "I came here hoping to learn from the Amazons. Not just Diana's people, but from the Banas too. No book can teach me what I must learn for myself."

"Did you say 'book'?" Akila let out a laugh and turned to her sisters. "Did you hear, sisters? This little one from Man's World 'read' about us." A collective laugh escaped the women in the water. Akila looked back at Maggie. "I'll tell you something, little one. I usually don't like strangers: all those I've had the misfortune to meet have been useless cowards. But you like me, you're certainly interesting." She pursed her mouth and looked her up and down. "Fine, this is the deal: If you show me that you're brave, I'll allow you to visit us, if that's what you want."

 _Alright, Sawyer, you're about to cross a line, is it worth it?_ Maggie sighed, remembering briefly the feeling of helplessness she felt when the photos disappeared. _There's no other answer._

"How do I show you I'm brave?"

"Mmm..." Akila pretended to be thinking. "Today it's very hot, jump from the waterfall."

 _I think I'm starting to hate you, bitch._

Io gasped. "Lady Maggie, no! You don't have to do that if you don't want to! The waterfall is too high for a beginner, we could look for a smaller one, or we co... "

"Wow, yes! A small waterfall for the little 'Lady Maggie'! Are you going to listen to her?"

 _Fuck you_

Maggie did not respond and hurried toward the waterfall. She rubbed her neck and began to climb the slope, controlling her breathing and ignoring Alex's furious voice in her head ( _"MAGGIE, NO")._ The ascent was not as hard as she thought, but halfway she was already breathless. The detective took thirty seconds to control her breathing and continued going up. _Don't look down, don't look down, don't look down..._

When she finally reached the top, the gentle murmur of the waterfall helped to calm her. The Banas were looking at her, Akila was looking at her, Io had her hands covering her eyes. The detective came a little closer to the edge and looked at the water, painfully far. _I still can regret it._ Maggie knew that was not true. _Oh Merciful Shit this is going to hurt me..._

She thought for a moment what would be the best way to hit the water, finally deciding that it would be better to throw herself into a cannonball. _Breaking your arm is better than breaking your head._

"I don't have the whole day, little one!" Akila shouted.

 _Well, it's still better than dying for a bullet._

Maggie followed her impulse and jumped out of the waterfall.

 _OH SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIIIIIIIIIT!_

Her heartbeat broke record speed as she fell, her hair took on a life of its own and it attacked her eyes, she tried to swallow saliva but choked. Maggie could not think of anything as she fell, fell, and fell uncontrollably.

 ** _*SPLAAAAASSSHH*_**

And then the warm water and the _atrocious pain_ reached her. Burning stretched across her chest to her arms and neck, swift as if she were struck by a brick wall. Maggie opened her eyes and saw some aquatic plants, there at the bottom of the pond. The detective ignored the pain and began to kick up, getting her head out of the water and taking a deep puff of beloved air.

The Banas began to applaud.

"Well, it wasn't so bad for your first time." Akila smiled, Maggie was surprised to see it was a normal smile, without malice. "We were going to have lunch now. Do you like deer?"

* * *

 **Diana of Themyscira**

 **12:53 PM**

Diana had spent the last few hours showing Lena the central part of the island.

It was a wonderful spectacle to see her face, one that Diana was sure she would remember even if a thousand years passed. Lena looked around her as if everything was a dream, the disbelief painted on her pretty little face. Diana was showing her the Coliseum, taking her to the center of the arena and enjoying the view around them. Seeing Lena marveling in that way, Diana fleetingly recalled the first sword duel she had won there, or when she was little and had held races with Io, or when Artemis had told her that the Daggers had worked and they were going to have a baby.

If she closed her eyes she could still see her, standing in the middle of the arena with the sun reflecting colors on her hair. _("Well, Princess, your Daggers have worked and I have a mini Diana in the womb. Now you have to do everything I tell you. My first order is that you take that look off that face and kiss me.")_

 _Everything was so perfect..._

After the Coliseum, Diana took her hand again and thought that perhaps it would be better to go back to the Palace. As they walked down the street, Diana noticed that a small reflection of light had fallen in Lena's eye. Her daughter looked up and searched for the source of the light. It came from the mountain in the distance, where the sun was reflected in the huge silver entrance leading to Doom's Doorway.

Lena frowned. "Where does that door lead?"

"It's the entrance to Doom's Doorway. It's lead to the tunnels under the island. Unfortunately we can't go there, it's forbidden."

"And why is it forbidden? What is Doom's Doorway? "

"...Let's just say it's not a door you would want to cross, sweetie. It's leads to the Underworld."

"What?" Lena opened her eyes in surprise. "Are you telling me we're standing above the fucking Hell?"

"That word is very ugly for a mouth like yours." Diana reprimanded softly. "And we're not standing above Hell. That's a different place: the dimension where the demons lives, although a human soul can accidentally end up there. The Underworld is the place where the dead rest. Those who had a good life go to the Champs Elysees and those who hadn't, serve Hades until they solve their pending affairs."

"You talk as if you have been there."

"I have been there four times."

Lena's face was priceless.

Both brunettes continued walking towards the Palace, Diana with her arm around her daughter's shoulders, and talking about the differences between the myths that people believed and reality. One of them was Hades' personality. Lena seemed surprised that the God of Death was not really a bad guy.

"But he's the God of the Underworld!" Lena said as they entered the Palace.

"You only say that because you saw that bad Disney movie." Diana frowned. "That movie did everything wrong: Hercules wasn't any hero. Ask your grandmother if you don't believe me."

Diana saw the bewilderment in Lena's face as they entered the banquet hall and found it empty, except for Artemis sitting at a small table in the center of the room. Her daughter looked at both of them.

"Where is everybody?"

Artemis smiled at her. "Maggie Sawyer went for a walk through the jungle, and Kara is fishing, and Alexandra went to explore the library. They will meet with us later. "

"Kara has to eat soon, if she doesn't..."

"Don't worry, Dear." Diana said leading her to the table, joining her wife. "The cooks are aware of Kara's great appetite. I promise she won't starve."

"Before lunch, how about we all sit down for a while?" Artemis winked at Lena. "There are many things we would like to talk to you about."

Lena blinked a couple of times, but sat down at the table, biting her lip slightly. Diana sat down next to her, taking her hand so that her daughter knew that everything was fine. _My poor Lena, she lives waiting for the next cataclysm._

"Are you enjoying the island, Lena?" Asked Artemis, smiling. "It may be a bit difficult to get used to this place" she said. "The first time I was here I was amazed at how impressive this place was. I was fourteen years old and the war had just ended."

"And you were so cute..."

"Diana, I wasn't cute. I was fierce and dangerous." Missy rolled her eyes. "Are they all treating you well? Haven't you had any problems?"

A brief car saleswoman smile was drawn onto Lena's face. "Everything is perfect."

Missy raised an eyebrow. "Is something wrong, Princess?"

Lena looked at her as if she were hesitating.

"...No, I just feel a little dizzy from the heat."

"Again?" Missy laughed. "Ishtar, in another life you must have been a penguin. If you are hot here, I don't want to imagine how you would feel in Bana-Mighdall."

"Yes, I probably wouldn't do well there..." Lena shrugged. "Did you have a good training... with Alex?"

"Normal." Her wife shrugged. "It's great that you mention that, because we have something that you might like."

Artemis bent over to pick up a small box from the floor. Lena began to caress her medallion. _My precious girl._ Diana took her hand again, pulling it away from the medallion. Lena's face relaxed.

Artemis put the little box covered in black leather on the table in front of Lena.

"I made them after you were born." Artemis smiled and bit her lip. Lena took the box. "They aren't the first, honestly. I did fifteen pairs before I was satisfied. I had to ask the blacksmith for instructions, Ishtar tested my patience that year..."

Diana looked at her. "Io isn't so bad."

"Io's crazy." Artemis shook her head and looked back at Lena. "Open it, they are yours."

Diana watched as Lena caressed the black leather of the box, her eyes dubious and nervous. It was then that Diana knew that her daughter had probably received many gifts in the life Luthor had given her, but that none of them had been given with love. Her gaze shouted it to the four winds. _She never deserved you, baby_.

Lena opened the leather case and let out a sigh. The gleam of the golden bracelets reflected in her eyes. Her baby bit her lip and caressed them, her hand trembling slightly as she touched the engraving of the Goddesses.

"This is Hera." Artemis pointed to the engraving on the right bracelet. "And this other one is Isis... They are beautiful, aren't they?" She took her hand. "I wanted to give them to you when you were twenty and take the Blessing, but I'm more than happy to give them to you now. "

"They are... they are perfect."

"I know, I made sure they were, Princess." Missy stroked her thumb. "Only the best for you."

Lena smiled so broadly that Diana's heart felt light as a feather.

"Will you teach me how to use them?"

"Don't run before you learn to crawl, sweetheart." Diana smiled. "You can start training when you feel ready, you're in no hurry."

Lena smiled and kept touching her bracelets.

"I love it. I can't wait to show them to Kara. I think I'll go and get her for... "

"Wait a minute, Lena." Diana put her hand on her shoulder. "There's something else we would like to talk to you about."

Lena looked at them again. "What is it about?"

"Remember when we were talking with Alexa a few days ago? You asked me how we conceived you." Diana took her hand. "We never finished that conversation…"

* * *

 **Diana of Themyscira**

 **1985**

Diana was so sleepy she could have slept on the ground of the underground tunnel. The light of her mother's torch lit her way, shining like a little sun in that absolute darkness. She tried to ignore the vermin fleeing from the light. _Spiders are fine, but I hate rats. I hope they are intelligent and hate me too._

"Mother, it's already past midnight. Don't you think you could tell me where we're going? I hope not to Doom's Doorway."

"Dear, what is the hurry?" Her mother replied, choking out a yawn. "I know Aphrodite despoils newlyweds of all sense of time, but I think you can be away from your wife a couple of hours."

 _Of course I can, but I don't want to._ "I just wanted to be with her before I have to go back to Man's World."

"The Man's World." Her mother snorted. "I thought if something good would come out of your marriage it would be that you finally stay home. My heart suffers without your presence, My Sun and Stars."

"I miss you too, Mother. But I have duties in Man's World that I can't and don't want to leave." Diana explained for the thousandth time. "There's a lot to do at the embassy, I think I'll need help with that now that I'm married. I've also made some friends that I wouldn't want to stop seeing... Do you remember that I told you about them?"

"More or less. What is the name of the woman who gave you those little sticky things at your wedding?"

"They're called condoms, Mother." Diana blushed in the dark. "Lilly has a strange sense of humor."

Hippolyta smiled a little, her violet eyes shining in the light of the torch. "How is the baby thing going, dear?"

Diana sighed. "Artemis insists she could... use a man to get pregnant, as is the custom in Bana-Mighdall. If she's waiting for me to change my mind about that, she should wait sitting."

"If your Bana desires so much to lie down with a man then she should..."

"You know that's not why, Mother." Diana jumped a hole in the floor. "It would only be to get pregnant."

"Do not you think it would be easier just to make a clay baby and pray to Hera? That is exactly what I did when I wanted to have a baby. I assure you the results are good."

Diana rolled her eyes. "I know, Mother. But I would rather not do that, for real." _It's not easy to know you were made out of clay, I don't want that for my child._ "Um... Missy isn't very good at sculpting. The baby would probably lack an eye or have an extra ear."

They turned into the next tunnel, finding two more slightly larger. Hippolyta entered the one on the left and Diana followed.

"If you feel jealous thinking of your Bana with a man, maybe you could be the one who lies with one to get pregnant. It would have to be a decent one. What was the name of your friend, the hero without powers? He seems to be a decent person... to be a man."

"Bruce?" Diana looked at her in disbelief. "Great Hera, no! Never! Bruce!?"

"Diana, dear, I'm not deaf."

"I'm not going to lie with Bruce, he's my friend and an honorable man." Diana pursed her lips. "And Missy hates him for something about a chair. Besides, I don't think his wife likes the idea."

"So how do you plan to have that baby you want so much, Diana?"

"I was thinking we could adopt." Diana shrugged. "There are a lot of little girls in Man's World who have no family. It must be horrible to think your parents didn't love you. I can't imagine a pain of that kind, who would be able to abandon a baby...?"

Hippolyta stopped in the middle of the tunnel.

"...things like condoms..."

"Diana."

The brunette stared at her mother, stopping in the middle of the tunnel. The Queen smiled gently at her.

"Come closer, I want you to see something."

Diana walked over to her mother. On the floor of the tunnel, lit by the light of the torch, she could see a large round silver plaque, the size of a table. The image of a man with thick curls looked back at her, making Diana shudder before those empty eyes. She did not recognize who he was until she noticed the man had a three-headed dog at his side. _Hades._

"What is this, Mother?"

"Something that's supposed to be lost." Her mother's face flashed in the firelight. "The Dagger of Hades."

 _What…? No, that's impossible._ Diana felt her mouth open slightly. "You told me it get lost millennia ago."

"I lied to you, because no one must know that I hid it here." Hippolyta sighed. Diana looked at her in disbelief. "I hope you are not in a hurry to leave, because what I have to tell you is quite long."

"You know the story of our origin, Diana." Her mother's face shone in the torchlight. "You also know about all the battles I fought alongside my sister Antiope, when the world was young and my sister and I ruled together. Trust me when I tell you that there was no monster that she and I could not defeat together, with the help of the Gods."

"Antiope was a free spirit, smiling, obstinate, cheerful..." She smiled. "Everything was easy if I was with her."

"I know." Diana said. "You told me a lot about her."

"She liked stories, too." Her violet eyes flashed. "Her favorite was Lena and the Great Monster. If I close my eyes, I can still see her smiling as I tell her that story: her black hair, her blue eyes... I was thinking of her when I sculpted you."

"But one day Antiope fell in love."

"Theseus."

"Theseus, yes." Hippolyta shrugged. "She fell in love with a mortal. Does that remind you of someone?... Thank the Gods, your story ended better. I prefer you married to Artemis a thousand times over giving up your immortality." Hippolyta slipped her hand under her tunic, searching for something.

Diana saw her mother take out the Dagger of Hera.

"You already know the story of the Daggers, Diana. Aphrodite herself gave them to Antiope and me. The Dagger of Hera was for me, with it I might give eternal life to my people and to all who were worthy to join us. And The Dagger of Hades was for Antiope, so that she would be able to take the life of any enemy, mortal or immortal. When Antiope left and founded Bana-Mighdall, she took her Dagger. Aphrodite gave it back to me when she died."

Diana waited for her mother to continue.

"But the Goddess of Love gave it back to me... different."

Diana watched her mother slide her finger gently over the blade of the dagger, getting a drop of blood red as a rose from the garden. The Amazon Queen dropped the blood on the image of the God of Death. Diana stood completely still when she saw the plaque slide forward, as if it were a secret door. _It's exactly what it is... It's the door to a secret hiding place._ Her mother leaned forward and reached out her hand, taking out a beautiful black-blade dagger.

Hippolyta approached her daughter.

"The Dagger of Hera, to make you immortal." She put the silver and green dagger in her hand. "And The Dagger of Hades, to kill any enemy and make you mortal."

Diana could not take her eyes off them. Together, they were the most magnificent treasure she had seen in the last five hundred years.

"Why are you showing them to me now?"

"Because Aphrodite has... added another skill to them, one that can be very useful to you now."

Hippolyta took the Daggers and held them both in one hand. Diana saw her mother cut the palm of her hand with both daggers, bringing the blades together, getting a drop of blood. She dropped the blood on the ground of the tunnel.

Nothing happened.

"Mother, what...?"

"This does not work with me, or I would have used it to have a child, Diana." Hippolyta pursed her lips. "Give me your hand."

Diana looked into her mother's eyes and held out her hand. The pain of the cut was as mild as a wasp sting. The drop of her blood shone through both Daggers. Her mother shook them a little and it fell to the ground.

At first nothing happened, but after three seconds Diana saw something begin to emerge from the earth. Something very thin, which grew about five centimeters and...

 _A flower._

In front of Diana was a small yellow flower in a place where the sunlight had never been.

"Together, The Daggers can create life." Her mother gave her back the Daggers. "Aphrodite told me that it would only work with the people who love with all their heart. And before you were born, I was alone... So they never worked with me."

"Mother..."

"Make Artemis drink a drop of your blood." The Queen smiled. "And let's pray for my granddaughter to look like you."

"I don't understand. Why the secret? Why don't any of our sisters know about this?"

Hippolyta smiled sadly. "I saw Antiope killing a Cyclops with a single stab from The Dagger of Hades. In wrong hands, this could kill a God, or something worse."

"What could be worse than killing a God?"

"Even the Gods have Gods, my daughter."

* * *

 **Lena (Luthor) of Themiscyra**

 **1:20 PM**

Lena stared at Diana, her left hand caressing a bracelet and her right hand holding Artemis'. Diana watched her fingers on the table, sometimes raising her eyes so that their eyes met.

"My mother has The Dagger of Hera in custody." Diana said quietly. "And the Dagger of Hades is still in the tunnels, where any person would be lost if he doesn't know the place... We never made public the exact form in which we conceived you." Diana took her hand. "Only Alexa, we and my mother know it. If you want to tell your friends, you have to let them know that it must remain a secret."

"I... yes, of course." Lena replied from the confines of her confusion. _I'm worse than that Twilight's baby._

"Are you alright, Princess?" Artemis rubbed her arm. Lena smiled.

 _'Princess' doesn't sound so bad when she says it. It was just my imagination, of course she doesn't want Alex more than me._

"'I'm fine." She smiled sincerely. "Well..." Lena laughed. "My life becomes more and more and more strange ... but I'm fine."

"That's all that matters." Both Amazons rubbed her shoulders.

The moment was interrupted when a cook came out of the kitchen door. Lena looked at her and her eyes began to ache at how ugly that woman was, like a toad. She was short and plump, with brown hair. All her clothes were pink and she had a ridiculous hat on her head.

Diana and Artemis' faces turned white.

"Your Majesty, Princess Lena... Princess Consort," said the ugly woman with a horrible little smile.

"I've told you a thousand times that I'm Artemis, Dolores." Artemis frowned.

"Your Majesty, there has been a problem with lunch." Dolores ignored the redhead. "I'm afraid Amelia has eaten all the bread and lied to me. I'm a tolerant woman, but if there's something I can't stand, it's the lie... Aw, beautiful bracelets, Princess."

"Thank you." Lena said with her business-woman face.

"I hope you have luck learning to use them." The woman smiled and Lena shuddered in horror. "Learning something new is never easy. I was a professor a hundred years ago, before I became an Amazon. If you need help with that..."

 _Time to run away._

"I just remembered that I have to find Kara." Lena told her mothers. They nodded quickly with understanding, and Lena hurried off from the table without looking back.

The brunette walked out of the Palace, still feeling the pain in her eyes. _That woman wouldn't look so frightful if she didn't just wear pink... How the hell was she accepted here? And was she supposed to be a professor? She looks like a character from a bad book._

"Lena!"

The brunette turned before going too far. As she did so, she found Kara standing in front of the Palace, with a big smile on her face and an even bigger fish in her hands.

"Where have you been, Potsticker? You missed the fun! Fishing with nets is amazing! Look what I caught!" Kara lifted the huge fish in her hand. "It's a Surubí. Is not it great?"

"You should put it somewhere before it spoils." Lena wrinkled her nose. "Listen, Kara, the cooks have had a problem with lunch. Are you okay? Aren't you hungry? We'll have to look for food somewhere else. I promise you that…"

"Don't worry, Potsticker." Kara smiled. "I have an idea."

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **1:51 PM**

 _This is so beautiful._

Kara was lying on the beach, enjoying the heat of the sun and Lena's body next to hers. She took a big breath of clean air. Almost all the Surubí had been devoured by the Kryptonian and the CEO, after which they both relaxed in the sand. Lena was using Kara's arm like a pillow, her eyes closed in the sunshine.

Kara looked back at Lena's new bracelets, shining on her arms. _They are beautiful_. The blonde touched the face of the Goddess Isis with her index finger.

"You like them a lot."

"I love them." Lena answered with closed eyes and a smile. "Artemis made them herself... with the Gods of them both." Kara watched Lena smile in the sunlight. "They love me."

"Of course they do." Kara caressed the brunette's cheek with her index finger. "They're good people and you're amazing."

Lena opened her eyes. "Kara, tell me the truth... You're not angry because I've decided to stay, are you?"

"I would prefer you to be safe at home." Kara felt the sand touch her cheek as she turned to look at her. "But if you feel that the right thing is to stay here, here with you is where I will be."

"I want to start training." Lena said. "I think it's something I have to try. Here, so far from L-Corp, my problems, my reputation... that seems the most logical." She stroked her bracelets. "I know I'm not going to dodge bullets overnight, but I have to try. No, I have to do it."

"Do whatever you have to do, Lena." Kara sighed. "But I can't protect you if you do."

"I don't want you to protect me from this."

"I know." Kara kissed her forehead. "And that terrifies me."

"I need to prove that I also can be like-..."

"Oh by Rao, is that Maggie?!" Kara exclaimed in astonishment.

The detective was advancing slowly toward them, completely soaked, leaning on the shoulder of an Amazon who looked like a child. _Is she wounded!? What happened!?_ Kara got up and walked towards them. Maggie's face contracted in pain with every step she took. _Alex isn't going to like it..._

"Maggie!" Kara tried to help her walk. Maggie groaned. "Maggie, by Rao! What happened to you!?"

"... Let's say I fell from a waterfall."

* * *

 **Note: Queen Antiope was the founder of Bana-Mighdall. But when you go to see Wonder Woman, you will notice that Antiope is perfectly alive in the movie. That means those... people ... have changed the canon again and eliminated the Banas AGAIN. (ARTIE D:)  
And yes, I just turned Umbridge into an Amazon. Don't get excited, she's not the traitor**


	24. Day Two: It's a wonderful day

**The following Amazons belong to DC Comics, none have been created by me. (You do not need to create anything when DC has incredible characters)**

* * *

 _Lena was standing in the middle of the rose garden._

 _The air around her was fresh, so she came to the conclusion that it must have been dawn, when the night had not yet died and the sun was timidly rising. Lena felt the hairs on her neck bristle in the cold air._

 _The brunette walked down the stone path, not taking her eyes off the colorful roses. They were so beautiful that she was tempted to reach out and prick herself on their thorns, just to make sure they were real._

 _She found Lex when she turned on the blue rosebush._

 _Her brother was looking up at the sky, patiently waiting for the sun to rise over the horizon. His hands played with a yellow plumeria. Lena let out a sob when she saw him._

 _"Why do you do this to me?" Her voice cracked. "I know you're not Lex..."_

 _Lex's figure turned to look at her. Lena could recognize the black color in his brother's eyes, almost absolute as if he had no pupils._

 ** _I wanted you to see me this time_**

 _"You're not my brother." It hurt Lena to see him. "Why do you take on his appearance? Do you want to torture me?"_

 ** _On the contrary, my desire was to make you feel good_** _. Lena heard the voice in her mind. **I thought a familiar aspect would make you feel more comfortable.**_

 _"And why don't you just show me your true appearance?" Lena tried to control her voice. "It's not like I could take a picture of you."_

 _Lex looked back at the horizon. **I do not have a true appearance. I do not have a physical body that your eyes can observe.** Lex looked at the plumeria. **And I thought you would be happy to see your brother.**_

 _"He went crazy and decided he would be happier with me dead." Lena bit her lip hard. "Thinking about him only brings me pain."_

 ** _Come sit next to me._**

 _Lena wanted to do the opposite, she wanted to turn around and run away without looking back. But she knew perfectly well that she had no chance of doing that._

 ** _Do not be afraid._**

 _"It's easier said than done." Lena began to move slowly toward her brother's figure._

 ** _You all are always terrified of the unknown, unaware that you know nothing. Therefore, you live scared._**

 _Lena sat down next to the thing._

 ** _I am not a thing._**

 _"And what are you, then?" Lena did not dare look at him and instead she stared at the horizon. "Why do you make me forget? Are you a God?"_

 ** _A god?_** _The voice echoed in her mind. **I do not like that word, it is full of arrogance. Those you call 'Gods' take charge of treading the world as if you were the ants you know.**_

 _"Then what are you?"_

 ** _There is no right word in your language for what I am, Gap. Neither in this universe nor in the others._**

 _"You could tell me. After all, you always make me forget."_

 _The voice took a few seconds to respond. Lex caressed the plumeria petals._

 ** _I am not here to talk about me._** _Lex took another flower. **It is about you.**_

 _"About me?"_

 ** _It is not fine what you are doing._**

 _"I don't understand."_

 ** _You are filling your heart with things that will make you weak._** _Lex looked at their feet. **Jealousy. A great quantity of jealousy. Jealousy to your friend, jealousy to your partner, jealousy that does not stop growing. It is unacceptable that you feel jealous, Gap, that is an aberration to your nature.**_

 _"My 'nature'? Is it too much to ask for some answers?"_

 ** _I apologize, but it is. Maybe someday I will tell you the whole truth... Now you are too young and you are not ready. This is shown by the fact that you feel jealous._**

 _"I wouldn't be jealous if the people around me weren't so perfect." Lena knew this was not Lex, but she could not stop the words from coming out of her mouth. "I didn't even care about it before, because I had no one to impress. But now I have Kara, and Diana, and Artemis... Kara lives surrounded by strong people and when she met me, I was a mess pretending to be strong. Diana and Artemis have spent their whole lives training to be strong... I don't want to imagine what they would feel if they knew I used to be an alcoholic."_

 ** _They would love you anyway, love works that way._**

 _"It's not enough." Lena watched the sun rise over the horizon. "I want to be worthy of everyone's love, I want them to look at me as they look at Alex, as if I were a small sun."_

 ** _You want to become someone to admire._**

 _"Yes."_

 _Lex smiled. **Then I will help you.**_

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **8:05 AM**

Kara woke when she heard a dry noise, like an object falling to the floor. The blonde opened her eyes alarmed, straining to find the source of the sound and finding Lena on the floor doing push-ups.

Her girlfriend had her hair tied in a ponytail, and she had also removed her T-shirt so she would not perspire in it. Kara watched her with astonishment as Lena continued to exercise at full speed.

"Lena?"

"Morning, my love." The brunette responded with happiness in her voice, shifting from the push-ups to a few quick sit-ups.

 _Am I dreaming?_

"Potsticker, are you exercising?"

"There's no better way to start the day!" Lena stood up and began to do squats. "I woke up and said to myself _'Today everything is going to be wonderful'_. Why shouldn't it be wonderful? I'm on a lost island with the love of my life, almost my whole family; today it's not hot and I feel the world is smiling at me for the first time in a long time." Kara watched Lena stare at her with a giant smile. "We'll have a great day today, Puppy."

Kara looked at her in confusion. "Are you okay? Have you had any dreams?"

"No, I haven't had any dreams, I'm just feeling very, very, very good. We have a great day ahead and I'm determined to maintain a positive attitude." Lena interrupted her exercises to take her hand and kiss it. "I've planned all that I want to do today: I'll look for Mom and we'll train together. Maybe later you and I can visit some Temples, I'd like to see Hestia's, then I'd like to... Why are you looking at me like that?" Lena blinked a couple of times.

"Lena, you called her Mom." Kara was shocked.

"Yes." Her girlfriend smiled softly. "I think I want to do it from now on. To begin to make up for lost time. What do you think?"

Kara smiled. "I think that would be great."

"Wonderful, now get out of bed, Miss Danvers! The sun shines, the birds sing, and you and I have a great day ahead." Lena smiled and winked.

 _She's as excited as a little girl! Aww 3_

Kara smiled and got out of bed too. Lena extended her arms and Kara hugged her, spinning in circles around the room. Kara felt a tickle on her nose when Lena kissed her there.

"Ready for a great day, Puppy?"

"Ready for a great day, Potsticker."

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **8:15**

Maggie Sawyer was sneaking back to her room, after escaping into the jungle that early morning. The Banas liked to receive the sunrise with a sacred fire, the same way they welcomed the night and the eve of a battle. _And I have to spend as much time as possible with them to observe them well. The traitor is close, I'm sure..._

Maggie still felt pain when she moved her arms, although she already could walk normally. She pursed her lips at the pang of pain she felt when she gently opened the door to her room.

Alex's serious gaze received her, sitting on the bed and with her arms crossed.

 _Did I really think she would not find out? Shit_

"Maggie."

"Alex..."

"You got lost on the way to the bathroom?"

The detective closed the door softly. " I can explain it..."

"Go ahead, I'm all ears." Alex crossed her legs. "Yesterday you lied about falling from a waterfall, are you going to lie to me now too?"

"Yes I fell from a waterfall!" Maggie frowned. "Well, I actually jumped, but..."

"Maggie, what the hell!? You jumped from a waterfall!?" Alex's angry stare was replaced by one of concern. "How the hell did you think that was a good idea!? Who convinced you? Io!? As soon as I find her..."

"It wasn't Io's fault. In fact, she said it was a bad idea."

"Maggie, what the hell are you doing?"

The detective felt a little guilty when she saw the concern in her eyes.

"I was trying to earn the trust of the Banas." she sighed. "I had to prove that I was brave."

Maggie paid close attention to Alex's face. Her pupils were dilated, her teeth tightened, her head turned back slightly.

"To earn the trust... of the Banas." Alex stood up. "Are we talking about the same Banas that attacked us the other day? Arrogant bitches with a tendency to violence?"

"Alex..."

"Do you have any idea what they would do to you if they knew you were investigating them?" Alex's eye twitched. "I know. You would have to go home in a liquid container."

"Alex, I can't miss an opportunity like this, when will it happen again? The Banas are right in front to us, and the traitor is among them."

"They're all too young." Alex put her hands on her hips.

"There are more in the camp."

"Have you been to their camp!?"

Maggie ignored that last part. "There are fifty-five, I've counted them. Thirty of them are too young, but any of the other twenty-five could be the traitor."

"And how come you're so sure the traitor is here?" Alex was still frowning.

"Because it's logical." Maggie said, her eyes shining. "Alex, babe, put yourself in the traitor's place: she helped in Lena's kidnapping, probably thinking she would never come back. Thirty years later, Lena reappears." Maggie watched Alex relax her face a little. "We don't know what her motives for being Lillian Luthor's accomplice were; all we know is she's out there and she knows we're looking for her. What would you do if you were cornered that way?"

"Keep an eye on my enemies." Alex pursed her lip. "Find out what they know."

"And that's why I'm so sure she's here on the island. It's a race to see who discovers who first. Lena could be in danger..."

"You could be in danger."

"Alex..."

"Next time I'll go with you." Alex sat back down on the bed. "I'm not going to let you risk your life alone. We're in this together, remember?"

 **Kara Danvers**

 **9:15**

* * *

 _Today Lena seems... very energetic._

Sitting on the steps of the stadium, Kara realized that she had imagined many possible scenarios of Lena's first training, but none of them included her actually doing it so well.

Artemis was teaching her to use a Bara Bo ten feet away. Lena had her hair in a braid, wearing a light white toga. _She looks like an Amazon_. The brunette moved her Bara Bo at an incredible speed, blocking her mom's attacks without any problem.

Beside her, Queen Hippolyta watched the scene with disbelieving eyes. "Mother Gaia... This is not my granddaughter's first training, is it? She is doing amazing."

Kara smiled. "Well, Your Majesty, she always had good reflexes."

It was a lie.

Kara turned to look at her girlfriend, whose skin began to shine with sweat and whose face had a giant smile. Her girlfriend, who was practicing with a weapon she had never used... and doing it incredibly well. Her girlfriend, who a week before had stumbled across a chair in the middle of the kitchen. Her girlfriend, who had never had time to exercise, always absorbed by work.

Her girlfriend, who had woken up and decided that she was going to do it well...

And she was doing it.

 _And Artemis isn't being gentle with her, she's training her like she's one of the DEO's soldiers._ Kara watched Lena dodge another of her mom's attacks. _Maybe not so hard, but just as quickly._

 _I don't like this._

Kara could not help but think of the gaps in her memory, the nightmares, the mornings when Lena just did not act like herself.

 _And now this._

Lena dodged the next blow of the redhead's Bara Bo.

"You're going very slowly!" shouted the brunette, smiling with joy.

"Where did you learn to dodge like that!?" Artemis tried to attack her legs.

Lena jumped quickly. "I inherited it!"

Queen Hippolyta let out an exclamation of astonishment. "Today my granddaughter is being blessed by Athena."

 _Is it true?_ Kara made her best attempt to smile at the Queen _. Blessed by Athena... Or influenced by something else? Oh Rao, please, please, no..._

Artemis finally hit Lena's hand, causing her to release her Bara Bo. In another swift hit, the Bo struck the brunette's legs.

"Ahh!"

And Lena gave an elegant twist in the air before falling to the ground noisily. Kara shuddered.

Artemis laughed. "Never lower your guard, Princess."

"I didn't lower my guard." Lena said, still on the floor. "It's not my fault that my Kara looks so beautiful with the sun reflecting in her hair." Lena rose from the floor and winked at her.

Kara did her best to smile back.

Artemis smiled and approached her daughter. "We'll have to put a bag on Kara's head if you want to get better, Princess." She helped her up. "...Even though you're doing it very well to be your first time, I'm shocked."

"I'm not." Lena laughed. _I am, Potsticker_. "I'm sure Themiscyra's air is making me faster and stronger."

Beside her, the Queen nodded. "There is no place where one is stronger than at home, Artemis."

The redhead raised an eyebrow at both her mother-in-law and her daughter. _She's an experienced warrior, she knows that no one becomes so good overnight. Come on, Artemis, you also have to see what I see._

Lena took her Bara Bo again. "Are we going to keep training or not, Mom?"

The redhead's face lit up for two seconds. She smiled and they both went back to practice with their Bos with renewed energy.

 _I think I'm alone in this._

"It reminds me of Diana's first training." said the Queen at her side. Kara looked at her. "She had so much energy that she could have climbed the mountain to the Oracle without getting tired."

"You trained her?" Kara asked absently.

"No, unfortunately I did not." Her gaze turned distant. "It was done by the person who was then my right hand, General Philippus. She used to say that Diana was blessed by the Goddesses, and that was why she learned and improved faster than the others... My heart rejoices to see that blessing has been inherited by her daughter. "

Kara looked at the Queen. "Where's Philippus now?"

"We lost her in the war with Bana-Mighdall." The Queen pursed her lips.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Kara sighed. "My aunt was in many wars before we lost our home. She used to say that you never forget the face of the person who dies by your side."

"Philippus did not die." Hippolyta's face hardened. "She defected overnight, in the last months of the war. We have not heard from her again."

"She defected?" Kara looked at the Queen in surprise. "Why would an Amazon do something like that?"

"Do you ask it for your story, young lady?"

"No, I swear to my God." Kara put a hand on her heart.

The Queen smiled sadly. "Immortality is a double-edged sword. If you have your family to share it, it is similar to eating honey from a large honeycomb. But if you are alone..." the Queen sighed. "I begged the Gods for a child and they gave me Diana, and now I also have Lena, with whom I have to recover the lost time. I love my family, young Kara."

"I'm glad to hear that." Kara said sincerely. "Because Lena has already suffered a lot in her life, and what she deserves and needs is to feel loved by a family."

"My granddaughter is loved and has a family." The blond woman smiled. "And that is because of you. You are a good lover, young Kara. And Diana says you would be a good Amazon too. Would not you like it?"

Kara opened her mouth in astonishment, looking at the Queen, unable to believe what she had just said. But before she could think of an answer, the journalist heard a **_ZAP!_** Alarmed, Kara turned to look at Lena and the redhead.

Artemis was on the floor.

Kara opened her eyes in shock. Lena was smiling, spinning her Bara Bo into her hand while looked playfully at her mother on the floor.

"Never lower your guard, Mom."

"How in Isis' name did you do that!?"

"Oh, come on, you won't expect me not to have a couple of special moves being who I am, will you?"

"Great Hera." The Queen Hippolyta got up and went to Lena. "I have not seen such natural dexterity since my sister killed her first siren. I am impressed, Lena. Do you know that only three people have beaten Artemis in a duel? It seems your daughter could be the fourth, Artemis."

"I wouldn't bother losing against my daughter." The Bana rose from the floor. "...After a duel of at least twenty minutes."

 _What's going on? Why doesn't anyone realize that this is WEIRD?_

The strange scene was interrupted by the sound of a sharp whistle.

Kara saw an Amazon of oriental features approaching them in the distance, holding a yellow parchment in her hand. Artemis's face suddenly hardened. The Amazon came towards them and Kara noticed the light clothes, and the many iron bracelets on her arms. _A Bana._

The Amazon bowed her head to Queen Hippolyta. "Good morning Majesty, Princess, Artemis, Princess' Beloved."

 _She'_ _s referring to me?_

"May the Gods grant you a good morning, sister." answered the Queen with a stone smile.

"My Shim'Tar has sent me with a message."

"We hear you." The Queen rubbed Lena's shoulder.

The Bana opened the parchment in her hands. "From Akila of Bana-Mighdall, Shim'Tar of her people, to The Queen Hippolyta of Themiscyra, Mother and Protector of Paradise Island. The present message is a formal invitation to attend a Friendly Tournament being held tomorrow afternoon. Any Themiscyrian who wants to test her strength against ours is also invited."

"Akila is organizing a Friendly Tournament?"

"And she wants to invite you and the Princesses."

Hippolyta pursed her lips, and exchanged a glance with Artemis. Kara noticed that Lena's eyes shone and her mouth twisted into a mischievous smile.

"Tell your Shim'Tar we will be there." The Queen finally said.

The young Bana nodded and turned, going back to where she had come from.

Lena turned to the red-haired Amazon. "A Friendly Tournament, then? Does that make any difference compared to a Non-Friendly Tournament?"

"Yes." Artemis's green eyes hardened. "Fewer people die."

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **10:59 AM**

Alex prepared her gun, checking that everything was in place as she walked through the jungle with Maggie and Io. _But I wouldn't have a chance with it if I had to use it._ Alex touched her waist, where she had hidden the curved-blade dagger Artemis had given her, the same one with which she had climbed to Giganta. _I probably can only count on this in case of an emergency._

"How long will it take to get the camp, Maggie?" Alex asked.

"About five minutes or so, babe" her girlfriend answered, jumping a rock.

"I'm so glad to be here with you!" Io's eyes sparkled. "I wish we didn't have to spend time with the Banas but I'm so happy to be here with you! The last time I had a full conversation with a person was fifteen years ago, when Persephone said 'it's hot' and I answered her 'a lot' and then she left and..."

"Io."

"Yes, Lady Of Danvers?"

"It's Alex."

"Yes, Lady Alex?"

"Shut up."

"Yes, ma'am."

 _This girl talks too much, maybe if Maggie and I starting running..._

Alex smelled the Banas' camp before she could see it. It was a strong smell of meat cooking, which reminded her of the barbecues her father used to have on weekends. Two minutes later she could see the camp, the tents, the Banas moving from here to there and a large bonfire in the center. A group of more than twenty young Banas were quartering animals that looked like they were freshly hunted. The older ones were watching the meat being cooked on the big bonfire. Alex saw Akila sitting there, with two little girls. The Shim'Tar was talking to them about something, smiling and joking. However, warned by that sixth sense that all the Amazons seemed to have, she looked up and saw them as soon as they arrived.

"Maggie of Sawyer, I thought we had scared you." Akila smiled and looked at Alex. "I see you brought your consort."

"That's right." Alex said, lifting her chin. "Are you going to make me jump from a waterfall too?"

"You? You're the one who got into a fight with Amara to help Artie. I don't know if you're sane, but your courage is proven." She looked at Io. "And this insect is an Amazon, incredibly, so I can't kick her out even though I'm dying to do it."

Io stuck out her tongue. The two girls next to Akila laughed.

"I see you're very busy." said Maggie.

The little redhead girl next to Akila smiled. "We went hunting! And I hunted a rabbit! Do you want to see it?"

"Later, Ginevra." said Akila with a small smile. She then turned back to look at Maggie. "We are getting ready for tomorrow, we will have a little tournament to have some fun. This island is too quiet."

"That's because we're civilized people." Everyone ignored Io.

Maggie sat next to the other girl, the one with thick brown hair. "To be fair, Themyscira is full of fierce warriors."

"Of course." Akila raised her eyebrows. "Fierce warriors with water instead of blood. Hermione here has more fire in her soul than all Themyscira together, and the girl spends all her day reading."

Alex saw the little girl smile nervously.

"People who read are people who learn, Akila."

"And I have no problem with that, Alex of Danvers, as long as Hermie also learns to use a knife. Are you going to stand there?"

Alex and Io sat next to Maggie. The two little girls looked at them with obvious curiosity.

"Thirty years ago, poor Hermione would have had to suffer hell because of her habit of reading. But now things have changed a little thanks to our ambassador. "

"Alexa." said Maggie.

"Do you know her?" Akila looked at her, slightly surprised. "Exactly, Alexa. Poor Alexa didn't have an easy life at home, she would have died at least six times if it hadn't been for Artie and me. Artie defended her with the obstinacy of a mule. She always wanted to get stronger to protect her."

"That's what sisters do." Alex could not help smiling a little.

Akila smiled for a moment, then looked away _. She's thinking of something, I wonder what._

Maggie leaned forward casually. "May I ask why you resent Artemis?"

"Resent?" Akila snapped her lips. "I don't resent Artie, she's my blood sister. What I feel is pity, the same pity I feel for this insect present here." She looked at Io. "Immortals, slowly losing the ability to marvel at the world around them, enclosed in their island as if it were some kind of prison. Alexa may have many flaws, but at least she got us the freedom to decide where we want to live."

"We're happy this way." Io replied in an icy voice. "Our place is in Themyscira, with our Gods and our Queen."

"Lives of prisoners, but at least the prisoners have the sweet consolation of death." Akila raised her eyebrows. "Artie deserved better than that fate."

"She seems to be happy now, with Diana and Lena." said Maggie simply. _Wow... I didn't know that Maggie can be so manipulative. She's getting Akila to talk about Lena._

"Unfortunately, your friend Diana is quite selfish..."

"That's a lie!" Io was ignored again.

"... But the new Princess reminds me a little of Artie. That look she gave me when I called her 'weak'?" Akila laughed. "The girl has suppressed her thirst for blood for a long time."

"And she has the name of the prophecy." said the brown haired girl.

Alex frowned. "What prophecy?"

"Ignore her." Akila tugged gently on the girl's ear. "She refers to the old story of Lena and the Great Monster. She has the crazy idea that it's a prophecy."

"It's not a crazy idea." The brown haired girl frowned. "Ginny believes me."

"She would believe you even if you told her there are basilisks under the ground and giant spiders in the woods." Akila laughed.

Alex remembered fleetingly when Kara was small, always telling her different legends about Krypton at bedtime. Each one was more ridiculous than the other, like one that was about a man without a nose that would destroy her world. _But Dad used to listen to them with a smile, however crazy her stories might be._

"You want to tell me?" said Alex to the girl.

Maggie stared at her with a look of reproach, surely annoyed that she had to have her progress with Akila interrupted to hear the childish ideas of a little Bana.

Hermione smiled. "You'll see that it's a prophecy."

Akila rolled her eyes. "Ishtar, give me patience."

The brown haired girl stood up. "This story is older than the world, older than time, and older than the Gods themselves..."

"Get to the point, Mione."

"Shut up, Ginny... As I was saying, this story is older than the Gods themselves, it's millions of millions of years old, and it's been told in a thousand ways.

At the Beginning, before Existence, before there was even the idea of a universe or many, there were two Cosmic Entities, of which their real names are unknown. One of them wanted to create an Existence of freedom, justice, and love. This Entity is known as 'Lena', the Original Mother. The other Entity was just the opposite, full of hatred, rancor, and envy; so evil that no one ever dared to give him a name. He is known as 'The Great Monster', or sometimes 'Anti-Lena'.

 _Okay, this is ridiculous. Just try to smile and she may finish soon._

Lena wanted to create Beings with whom to build beautiful Existences, of all races and colors, peaceful worlds where to unleash her benign nature, and to love and be loved. When the time came to create, The Monster, however, wished to create inferior beings who would worship and obey him, and subdue them completely to his whims. As toys for a child. Nor Lena or The Monster were able to agree, although they discussed the matter for three million of our years.

Then The Monster lost his patience." The little girl made a dramatic pause. "From his own person he created powerful Beings, but inferior to him, and called them Gods. These new creatures shared his pride and thirst for power. When he created a considerable number of each one, he turned them into his army and together they attacked Lena. The battle lasted a million years, in which innumerable Gods were destroyed and others were created to take their place. But neither Lena could reach to kill them all nor The Monster could create enough. They were tied."

Maggie's impatient gaze fell on Alex again. _It seems like someone wouldn't be a very tolerant mother._

"Then The Monster decided that if he could not kill his enemy, he could at least prevent her from winning. Instead of continuing to create Gods that wouldn't be useful, he used all his power to create a jail powerful enough to contain the other Entity. Lena was trapped and remains there until today.

After she was defeated, The Great Monster built the Existence that he desired, and gave it to the surviving Gods as a reward, to create creatures that worshiped and obeyed them. But...

"Alright, Hermione, that's enough." Akila said to the little girl. "My patience has a limit, young lady."

"But now comes the best part! One day Lena is going to find a gop to get out of her prison and..."

"A what?"

"Gop... Well, that was in the book, I..."

"And that's why I hate books." Akila rolled her eyes. "You better go and see if you can help your older sisters. And you three, if you're going to abuse our hospitality, at least you could help cook. Come on, I'm getting old and starving here."

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **3:31 PM**

Kara could not rid herself of the sensation that she was walking next to a stranger. A person with Lena's voice and face, but without being completely her.

"Did you see how I knocked her down?" said the stranger with a big smile as they approached the Temple of Athena. "And the Queen said that only three people have beaten my mom in a duel. Maybe if I'm lucky, someday I might be number four..."

"You did very well."

"Thank you, Puppy, I..."

"You did too well." Kara stopped walking.

Lena looked at her in confusion. "Kara?"

"What's going on, Lena?" Kara removed her glasses. "How is it possible that you're able to beat Artemis overnight?"

Lena blinked a couple of times. "Beginner's luck, maybe?"

"Lena, that doesn't exist!" The blonde ran a hand through her hair. "Maybe she let you win..."

"No." said the brunette with a frown. " _She didn't let me win_."

"Lena?"

"Why is it so hard to believe I've done it fine by myself, Kara?"

"Because you never touched a Bara Bo in your life!" shouted Kara, starting to get nervous. "Because before today you didn't even know what that was!"

"You're saying I'm supposed to be weak? I hope you're not saying that I shouldn't know how to handle a weapon."

"Yes. No! I don't think you're weak, I've seen you shoot a gun..."

"Guns aren't useful here, Kara."

"I know, I know, what I'm trying to say is that it's strange... You beating an Amazon overnight?"

Lena's gaze remained furious for a second... And then softened. The brunette rubbed her two shoulders gently, stroking them in circles.

"Oh, my poor Kara. You always worry about me too much." Lena stroked her cheek. "You're always so worried about all your loved ones. But you don't have to worry about me now, my love. You've heard my grandmother: I have natural abilities and you don't have to worry about me. And honestly, I feel a bit... nervous when you start asking those questions... because I realize how much you love me and how little I deserve someone like you."

"Lena, are you okay? What the hell are you saying?"

Lena looked her straight in the eye. "You don't have to worry about me..."

"..."

"Do you understand, Kara?"

"..."

"I'm perfectly fine. I'm happy, my love. But those questions make me feel... bad."

"..."

"Do you think you could stop asking them, please?"

"... Sure." Kara stroked the brunette's cheek. "I'm sorry, Potsticker. I didn't want to make you uncomfortable, I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I am." Lena rubbed her nose with Kara's. "I'm so happy that I could sing. How about we sing?"

"Of course! Haha, mmm..." Kara wrapped her arm around Lena and kept walking. "Mmm... I miss Hannah Montana. _I'm super super! I'm super-duper!"_

 _" So you wanna be just like! "_

 _" So you wanna be just like! "_

 _" Think you wanna be just like me! "_

 _" Everybody's watchin me! "_

 _" Never as easy as it seems! "_

 _"" To be super super! To be super super girl! ""_

Kara laughed and kissed her girlfriend's cheek. "I love you, beautiful."

"Me too, Kara Damn!vers."

"It's good that you're cute, your jokes are horrible."

Smiling happily, the couple entered the Temple of Athena. Kara immediately felt the change to a lower temperature and lighting. Inside the air was cool, impregnated with the aroma of the millennia. The place was so magnificent that for a moment Kara remembered the Temple of Rao, the brightest and most beautiful place on Krypton. The temple of Athena was rather darker, but the feeling of solemnity was the same.

The immense statue of the Goddess stood in front of the huge colored windows. Athena received them with her bandaged eyes, a giant sword in her left hand and a weighing scale in her right. _She looks so beautiful and powerful, full of grace and courage. She's the Goddess of the warriors._

Kara and Lena advanced along the wide hallway, watching the torches gleam like lava from a volcano. The Kryptonian felt her heartbeat rise in that cool atmosphere like a winter day.

"Kara." Lena took her arm. "Look."

The blonde looked to the right, where a motionless figure lay on the floor. A short-haired Amazon with her hands under her head. _Oh Rao, is she okay?_ Kara listened. Her heartbeat was relaxed and her breathing slow. _What a relief, she's just sleeping_.

"I think I know her." Lena said. "I think it's Persephone. Iis she okay?"

"She's sleeping. "

"Well, let her sleep. She must have drunk or something."

Lena walked towards the dark figure of the Goddess of wisdom, craft, and war. As they advanced, Kara saw a spot a little less black than the rest in that absorbing darkness. It was a few inches off the ground, levitating with its legs crossed. Kara's body tensed, preparing for the danger. However Lena smiled and advanced faster toward that point.

''Mother."

Kara saw that dark spot become Diana, who had been praying in silence a few inches off the floor. Wonder Woman turned to see them, with the most stunned look Kara had seen on her face. She went down to the floor immediately, almost tripping over her own feet. "Lena. Did you...?"

"You missed lunch, Mother." Lena said softly, so as not to disturb the solemnity of the place. "Have you been here all day?"

Diana's face shone in the darkness of the temple. "I have been giving offerings to Hera and Aphrodite all morning. Now I was begging Athena to give me wisdom and strength." Diana stroked Lena's cheek. "I heard you trained for the first time this morning. I'm sorry I wasn't there, my Sun and Stars. I was going to get you now, actually."

"To congratulate me on my great abilities?" Lena joked and folded her arms.

Diana gave her a big hug and a kiss on her cheek. "Here is your congratulations. I have no doubt you'll be amazing at whatever you do."

"Thank you, mother."

Kara saw Diana's smile spread like a northern aurora. The Amazon looked at her. "What about you, Kara? Would not you like to learn how to use a sword?"

"What?" Kara laughed. "I don't think it's necessary, I've always had enough with my own fists."

"Super strength isn't always enough, dear. Believe me." Diana smiled playfully. "And since you have found me, would you like to see a secret place?"

"A secret place?" Kara took Lena's hand. "Sounds good! Where are we going?"

"Can your species hold their breath for long time, Kara?"

* * *

 **Diana of Themyscira**

 **4:29 PM**

The waterfall stirred the water in front of Diana, turning it into a beautiful crystalline mirror full of lights reflected by the sun. A few lights made Kara's blond hair shine, turning it into a show of gold and honey.

"It's a little deep, so..." Diana realized that Lena was not listening, preferring to look at her girlfriend instead. Diana smiled and gently shook her shoulder. "We will have to swim a little deep. You have to hold Kara and not let go of her until we get to the cave, alright?"

Lena smiled and nodded. _Wow, she seems to be in a great mood today._

"And Kara." The Kryptonian looked at her. "I think it would be best if you took off your glasses, dear, they could fall and then it would be cumbersome to have to look for them at the bottom. Trust me, I lost my wedding necklace once." The blonde laughed. "And that pink blouse could be ruined too. You can leave them on the sand, no one will touch them."

"Okay."

Kara took off her blouse, revealing the thin sleeveless T-shirt she had underneath. She carefully folded her blouse and left it on the sand, then left her glasses too. Diana noticed that Lena had not taken her gaze from the blonde's buttocks. _Hera's Sake..._

She took Lena's face gently and turned it away. "Doing that is rude."

"What thing? Enjoy the view of the natural wonders?"

Kara came back, without the glasses that hid her pretty blue eyes. She frowned at Lena. "I heard that, Lena. I'd rather you didn't look at me like that with your mother nearby, thank you."

"Does it make you nervous, Puppy?"

"Well, I don't look at you that way with Eliza nearby."

"I want to bang you."

"Lena!"

"What?" Diana looked at them blankly. "I didn't understand. 'Bang'? Do you want to hit Kara?"

"N-No, Diana." Kara blushed. "Your daughter has decided that today she wants to make fun of me."

Diana sighed and rolled her eyes. _The youth of today and their antics._ She started to walk to the water, watching as Lena climbed onto Kara's back as if she were a light backpack.

"Hold your breath, sweetie. It will be only thirty-five seconds."

Lena nodded.

Diana dived into the water. The freshness of the crystalline liquid filled her whole body with familiar pleasure. Sunlight flowed through the water in the form of halos, creating little rainbows of confusing colors. Two seconds later, she saw Kara dive with Lena on her back.

Wonder Woman began to swim to the waterfall, passing beneath the noisy eddies. Upon reaching the opposite wall, she used it to push herself further down. The light began to be scarce, but the Amazon never lost the strength of her strokes and kicked. _Four meters underwater... Here it is_. A dark crack stretched out before her. Diana swam in without thinking twice, trying to open her eyes wide to see in the dim light. _Luckily Kara sees better than I do in the dark._

She found the bright spot shining a few meters above her, growing smaller as Diana advanced. At last the Amazon pulled her head out of the water, her black hair covering her face like a curtain. Diana fixed her hair and listened to Kara and Lena coming out of the water, her daughter taking a breath so deep that Diana was reminded of her first cry.

"I swear I saw a shark." Lena said with her black hair in a similar way.

"There wasn't any shark, Potsticker." Supergirl laughed.

"How do you know if it was so dark?"

"Lena, it wasn't dark for me. I swear there wasn't any shark. The only danger here is that medallion of yours that almost got stuck in my hair. Why don't you take it off now?"

"Take it off? Don't even think about it, Puppy." Lena looked around.

The subterranean cavern was lit by a few rays of sunshine that fell through the rocks of the ceiling. Diana came out of the water, approaching her trunks on the right to search for some candles. Everything was as she had left it last time: her trunks on the right, a hammock tied between two stone pillars, her old drawings on the walls, her collection of colorful rocks on a shelf carved in stone. _My private place._

Kara pulled Lena out of the water and both girls stood up. Supergirl looked around with her mouth slightly open. "Wow."

"A cave under the waterfall." Lena stared into the holes where the light came in. "Amazing."

Diana looked at her daughter with a smile on her face. "I found this place eight hundred years ago. I have kept it secret as my most precious treasure, it's the only place where I can be alone."

"Your Fortress of Solitude."

Diana smiled at Kara. "Exactly... Do you see those trunks on your right? I have a lot of things there. Old toys, birthday gifts, and things I've found throughout my life." She pointed to the walls. "I'm not very good at drawing, but sometimes the Muses inspire me. Sometimes I look at those drawings for hours, imagining..." Diana stopped talking. "This place is important to me."

Lena had moved closer to the hammock, watching it as if she doubted it was strong enough to withstand a person's weight. "This place is amazing."

"Here I told Artemis that I loved her for the first time." Diana bit her lip. "Here I kissed her for the first time."

Lena smiled mischievously. "I can imagine other things you did here for the first time."

Diana rolled her eyes. _Unfortunately, she has Missy's sense of humor. I guess nobody is perfect._

Kara was watching the drawings closely, caressing one of a three-headed dog. "This place is beautiful."

"This is my secret lair." Diana smiled. "And now it's yours too."

Her daughter and Kara looked at her in surprise.

"I want you to come here whenever you want." Diana smiled. "Nothing would make me happier than sharing this place with you, Lena. You can come here whenever you feel frustrated, or whenever you need to be alone. The same for you, Kara." Diana stepped closer to the blonde and fixed a lock of her wet blond hair. "This can be your Amazonian Fortress of Solitude."

Diana was surprised when the blonde hugged her with all her might. Luckily, she was wearing her suit and was able to give her an equally strong hug.

"I love it, Diana." _Is she crying?_

Lena came up to her too, smiling with bright eyes. "I love it, Mother... I don't know what to say, I... I love it, this place is perfect. I hope I'll have the opportunity to explore it a bit."

Diana wrapped her in her arms, rubbing the head of that beautiful creature she had created alongside the love of her life. "You will, sweetie. I promise."

 _You will have all eternity to explore as much as you want._

* * *

 **And I continue to exceed my crack levels**


	25. Day Three: Midditch

**...No reviews last chapter... Honestly, I feel silly saying this. I think I'll just stop writing Author's Notes.**

* * *

 **Artemis of Bana-Mighdall**

 **11:02 AM**

Diana's fingernails scratched gently on her scalp, caressing her hair, making a sigh of satisfaction escape Artemis's lips _. I love to wake up late_. The brunette's warm breath tickled her neck, sometimes accompanied by deep kisses. The Bana smiled and turned on her back, meeting the familiar, delicious sensation of Diana's skin against hers.

Diana began to trace circles around her waist. "Even if a thousand years pass I would never tire of touching you."

"I would prefer ten minutes now, Diana. _Ahhh._ " The redhead felt the brunette's index finger press against her clit. "Let them be fifteen."

* * *

 **Diana of Themyscira**

 **11: 18 AM**

"She called me Mother." Diana let out a deep sigh of happiness on her wife's neck. "I can't believe she called me Mother..." She closed her eyes and smiled.

"I can." Artemis bit her lower lip. "I told you that coming here was a good idea."

"Missy, I had to force you out of our room."

"Don't exaggerate either, Diana." The redhead sighed. "Everything would be perfect if only Luthor were dead."

"...She's in a coma." _One that caused herself to avoid telling me the truth._ "It's not the same, but I guess there's not much difference. I don't think Lena will change her mind, so we'll have to settle for that."

"She's a woman of firm decisions, that's good." She rubbed her back. "The four of them are determined people."

Diana hugged her wife and rested her head on her chest. "Missy... Do you think they'll accept? Because I'm having many illusions about the things that we could do, the six of us together... It would hurt if they said no. And I don't want to imagine how I would feel if Lena says she doesn't want to be immortal."

Artemis sighed. "It may be a bit difficult to process ... especially considering they already have a life in Man's World."

"Great Hera, I've forgotten Eliza Danvers! What if she objects to them becoming Amazons?... Wait, I know. We will adopt Eliza as well."

"Diana, we won't adopt Eliza Danvers." The redhead rolled her eyes. "As I was saying, they already have built a life. If we really want to convince them to stay, we have to offer them a better life than they already have... Maybe they won't always want to stay here on the island. In that case, they would have to do what you used to do and go and come back regularly. Lena is addicted to her job. I know for sure that Alexandra wouldn't want to leave the DEO, neither would Kara... "

"And Maggie loves her job." Diana smiled. "Her eyes shine when she has solved an enigma. Did you know her mother rejected her when she came out of the closet? What kind of person does that? When we adopt her, I'll make sure she knows how special she is."

"And I won't let that go to her head." Artemis laughed and came out of Diana's embrace. "When I told you we should adopt Alexandra, I didn't think you'd want to adopt Kara and Maggie as well."

"I realized that would be the solution to all the problems." Diana rested her face on her hand. "Lena would have no reasons to remain mortal, and Kara, Maggie and Alex wouldn't die... I swear I can't see them dying, not them."

"I know." Artemis began to pick up her clothes. "That's why we have to be convincing when we make the offer. And give them time to think about it. I didn't immediately accept it when you told me to become immortal."

"The most frustrating week of my life." Diana bit her lip.

"What I want to say is that it's not an easy decision." Artemis decided to tie her hair into a braid. "But if there's anything that being married to you has taught me, it's that immortality is something quite satisfactory if you have love. You're going to have the family you deserve, Diana, I promise."

"That we deserve both... Where are you going?"

"Alexandra told me yesterday that she wanted to talk to me." Artemis finished dressing. "That girl is disappearing for many periods of time."

"Surely with Maggie, Missy." Diana shook her head. "Aphrodite must have influenced them. Come on, go make sure Alex is alright."

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **11:26 AM**

Io's armory was the cleanest place Alex had ever seen on the island. The little Amazon was much more organized than she seemed. The counters did not have a molecule of dust. The swords, axes, and knives on the walls were polished. Her tools occupied a place of honor next to a large black anvil.

Artemis was next to her, sitting on the counter. "I'm surprised you chose this place for us to talk."

"Io said few people come here." _It doesn't surprise me_. Alex spread out the notes about the Banas on the table.

The redhead's eyes widened in surprise. "Alexandra, have you been...?"

"Looking for the traitor, yes."

"What?" The Amazon blinked. "Do you have the slightest idea how dangerous that is?"

"I know there's a risk that they will kill us, but Maggie is determined to research and..."

"Kill you? You know nothing, Alexandra Danvers." Artemis rubbed her forehead. "Killing is not allowed on sacred days, but they could cut off one of your legs and two of Maggie's, and not because you suspected them, but because you're trying to gain their trust with ulterior motives."

Alex felt someone add a big stone to the heavy backpack she already had on her back. "We can't go back."

"Does your sister know about this?"

"If Kara finds out, she would want to help or protect us. And I love my sister but she's not a very subtle person. It would be best if she doesn't know about this for now."

"Maggie is with them now, isn't she? Is that why she's not here with you? Of all the imprudence I've ever seen in my life..."

"I think we're close. Don't you want to know who is Lillian's accomplice?"

"Not at the cost of your well-being or that of Sawyer, Alexandra, and believe me when I tell you that you're in danger now." The Amazon answered frowning. After five seconds, Artemis sighed and rubbed her temple. "Half of my brain is mad that you're so reckless and the other half is proud that you're so brave."

Alex felt a small smile forming on her lips. "It would be easier if you helped us now, you know? After all, we've already gotten very far..."

"Blah blah blah, save your breath. Tell me what you want me to do."

"Maggie and I have made a list with the Banas who are old enough to be the traitor." Alex pointed to the papers on the table, on them were names with some physical characteristics. "I need you to tell me who of these women were there that night thirty years ago."

Artemis watched the papers carefully, biting her lip in a way that reminded her of Lena.

"If you need a moment to think-..."

"Xena." Artemis took that paper and separated it from the others. "She gave Lena an apple on the first day. She was rather a quiet and solitary woman, fierce in battle.

Gabrielle." continued the redhead. "She wasn't very ferocious, nobody took her too seriously. She was good at telling stories, she told Lena 'The Legend of the Philosopher's Stone' and some others. She was obviously in love with Xena."

"They married. "

"Oh." The redhead raised her eyebrows slightly. " I didn't know... "

"Azula was also close to her, a mad-faced brunette, obsessed with fire, and used to spent a lot of time with two others named Ty Lee and Mai"

And Akila, of course." Artemis sighed. "As soon as she met Lena, she tried to give her a knife. That caused her problems with..."

Alex and Artemis were interrupted by three Amazons who entered through the door at that moment. The Agent did not recognize the other two, but the first was the blonde with the scar on her face. The same one that always looked at Maggie with so much lust that Alex fantasized about punching her.

"Wow, it looks like someone's keeping secrets." said the blonde. "You're planning a party, aren't you?"

"And why don't you mind your own business, Persephone? Or why you don't do me a favor and disappear from my sight?" Artemis answered by folding her arms.

"As lovely as ever, Bana."

The dark-skinned Amazon put a hand on her arm. "Persephone, don't start, please. We have come to get a new sword for Menalippe, Artemis. She will return to the Oracle in a few hours and needs a new one. Why are you in Io's armory?"

"That's none of our business, Charis." said the blond-haired woman, Menalippe. "Remember that Artemis is training the young lady. Excuse us for interrupting, Artemis. We will only take a new sword and leave. Where is the blacksmith?"

"She's showing Maggie the island," Alex said quickly.

Persephone raised her eyebrows. "The beautiful Maggie prefers to spend time with Io the Annoying? What a disappointment. Forget the blacksmith, Menalippe, I'll get you a sword." The Amazon opened one of the cabinets on her left.

Charis frowned. "That's rude, Persephone."

"Menalippe has to go back to the mountain and you have to go back to Alkyone, you can't continue to take advantage of that poor woman's goodness."

* * *

 **Lena (Luthor) of Themiscyra**

 **12:05 PM**

Lena looked down the hill where she was stood, down to where the magnificent city gleamed in the distance. Themiscyra was as beautiful as it was mysterious, the most inaccessible city in the world. _And I'm here discovering that this is my home. But is it really? Can I really have a home here? An Amazon Luthor?_

Lena sighed and took the phone out of her pocket, looking at that shiny rectangle as if it belonged to another universe, holding it like a rope that bound her to her safe world...

Suddenly that changed.

Her insecurities vanished as if someone would have shooed them with a smack, replaced by a sense of complete security, almost omnipotence. Why continue to feel insecure? She had felt insecure all her life, begging for the love of a mother who had only hurt her, rejected by a father who had only looked at her with contempt since she could remember... Betrayed by Lex, who had plunged her into a misery so deep that only Kara had been able to save her.

She would give up every penny she had if it would make her brother love her again _. I'm still a Luthor for you, fucking psycho._

And why continue to feel sad and insecure?

 _I won't cry for Lex, nor for Lionel, and especially nor for Lillian again. I have a new life. I have friends, I have Kara, and now I have two mothers and a grandmother who want me without asking me for anything in return. Nothing can stop me._

 _I can change the world if I want._

 _I can eliminate hunger if I want._

 _I can stop wars._

 _I can cure diseases._

 _Stop global warming._

 _Make the world a much better place._

 _Spend my whole life with Kara and make her happy. The happiest alien in the world._

A giant smile appeared on her lips. She took a deep breath, enjoying that new confidence she seemed to have lately.

 _I feel unstoppable._

Lena turned on the phone, rubbing her neck while she waited. When the screen lit up, she noticed that the battery was at 93%

 _Okay, time to test Winn's skills._

Lena dialed her vice president's number, watching the birds fly over Themiscyra.

 ** _*Riiing* *Riiing* *Riiing*_** _*Hello, you have contacted Simon Masrani. I can't attend to you right now because I'm in the middle of a very important meeting. If you're my wife, the car keys are on the TV. If you are Claire Dearing, call my secretary directly. If you are Lena Luthor, this important meeting is about what you know. Leave a message after the tone **.* *Beep***_

"Simon, it's Lena Luthor." Lena started walking down the hill. "I hope you hear this message in time. Offer a 30% more to the Scots, we will get it back when we have InGen. If you have to increase the offer to 40% do it. That company can make L-Corp enter a new era. You know how important it is. Tomorrow I will call you back to ask how it went. Works hard, Simon, the future smiles at us, I feel it."

Lena hung up when she reached a row of small trees. The brunette watched them with a smile on her lips, reveling in that simple beauty. She looked at her cell phone again.

 _Battery 91%. Should I spend it calling Winn?... Okay, it'll only be a moment._

The brunette dialed the familiar number, watching the landscape change slowly as she advanced.

 ** _*Riiing* *Riiing* *Pip!*_** _"Lena?"_

"Morning, Winn."

 _"Morning? Here we're in the middle of the afternoon."_ Her friend laughed _. "How's it going?"_

"You're never bored on this island, I'm just taking a walk in the hills right now." Lena walked alongside some small trees with fruit. "Kara has literally eaten her weight in fish, and now she's taking a nap. Maggie and Alex are getting ready to attend a tournament in the afternoon. I was drinking lemonade, but that hideous cook appeared and started talking about her cat plates, so I left."

 _"Sounds like she's an annoying woman."_

"She's not annoying, Winn, she's awful." Lena stifled a pitiful laugh. "Yesterday she only cooked carrots for dinner. I swear she did it on purpose."

" _Are there centaurs on that island? You could order her to be thrown to the centaurs or something. You're the princess, after all."_

"The idea is tempting, trust me, but I can't do that. I have to earn the respect of these people before I give orders, they aren't 'subjects', but 'sisters'."

 _"It sounds... boring."_

"You've been watching too much Game of Thrones, Winn."

 _"Did you say anything about a tournament?"_

"That's right, it'll be in a couple of hours. My mother says it's small compared to the usual ones, but I think it'll be interesting."

 _"'Mother, eh?"_

"Well, it was your advice not to think and enjoy, remember?" Lena shrugged.

 _"Are you planning to enter the tournament, Arya Stark? Is it a dangerous thing?"_

"Today I feel like I could beat a giant with my own hands, but I think it will be another time. I don't want to draw attention with my super abilities."

 _"And we already have had enough giants for the whole year, thank you."_

"How are things over there?"

 _"M'gann is beginning to gain weight and have cravings. The other day she said that she would sell my soul for 'z'arr roots'. Honestly, that's a little insulting, I'm worth much more than some alien vegetables. In fact, now I'm with her in the shopping center. She wants to buy the crib."_

"That sounds great." Lena smiled. "Has she already found one?"

 _"She's trying, but there's a woman in a wheelchair who's buying a lot of things. She's in line and I've gone outside to talk with you."_

"What about Mr. J'oonz? Is not he there?"

 _"He's been busy, he's trying to figure out something from that 'Crisis' book, but the writing is too deteriorated. We're also looking for an alien thief who only steals things of lead... Um, don't tell anyone, it's not a big deal and we can handle it. Mr J'onzz and... Mike have it under control."_

Lena frowned. "Winn?"

 _"Lena, do I look gay?"_

"Hey, wait, my IQ is very high but I'm lost. What happened?"

 _"Mon-El said he likes me."_

Lena almost tripped over a stone. "... Wow... And what did you do?"

 _"I rejected him as gently as possible, of course! I'm not gay!"_

"Well, you never know..."

 _"Lena..."_

"Okay, I'm sorry. And he took it well?"

 _"He took it as well as you can take a rejection."_ Winn sighed. _"And to top it all off the weird guy from the pizza shop also invited me out. I think I'll buy pizza elsewhere, that guy is creepy. Oh, it's M'gann's turn! Did you know that there has not been a Peppermint Martian in fifteen hundred years?"_

"Peppermint Martian?" Lena laughed.

 _"New race, new name. Their story is very interesting, I'll tell you when you get back. Now I have to go."_

"Good luck, straight guy."

 _"Someone has to be straight in this city._ _The Martians don't count."_

Winn hung up when the small trees turned into grape vines, large and shiny like glass marbles. The brunette noticed the beautiful green, yellow, purple, and ( _white?_ ) fruits as she walked up the hill. After looking at her cell phone ( _73%, damn_ ) the brunette put it in her pocket. The grapes stretched to the horizon, Lena could not see the end.

An Amazon with a straw hat was cutting grapes with a small knife. Lena cleared her throat and walked over to her.

"Hello, good morning."

The Amazon turned to see her, and Lena found herself before a pair of huge, crystalline eyes, shining on a scarred face.

"May Gaia give you good mornings, Princess. Are you taking a walk?"

"It's a good day for walking."

"No doubt." Alkyone stood. "A beautiful day to reap good grapes too, Princess."

"The royal guards also reap?"

"What we have in excess here is time, Your Majesty."

Lena frowned at the nobility title. "I have never seen white grapes in my life."

"I recommend that you don't go near or eat them, they are called Morpheus Grapes, whoever eats them will experience lucid nightmares, it's like being asleep and awake at the same time."

Lena walked away from the grapes. "Why do you reap something like that?"

"It's also a good repellent for rats." Alkyone cut a bunch of red grapes. "These, however, are the ones with which we make my favorite wine. Do you want to taste them?"

Lena smiled a little and approached the bald woman, accepting one of the grapes. When she tasted it, it was as if a sweetness bomb made her mouth explode. "They're delicious."

"I reap them myself." Alkyone took off her hat. "When your mother was little, she used to come here at night and steal a bunch or two. Diana always had a weakness for sweets."

"She still has it." _She ate our chocolates at home. Kara almost had a heart attack._

Alkyone smirked. _She has a nice smile_. "You also have it, haven't you? I remember once when you escaped at night, when you were just learning to walk." Alkyone laughed. "You came here and ate half of your weight in grapes."

Lena smiled and shrugged, still unaccustomed to everyone knowing her here. "It's no wonder, they're really good grapes."

"I'm glad to know, this vineyard is relatively new. You never know what to expect from new things, but the other one burned, so..."

"It burned?"

"Actually it was burned down." Alkyone shrugged. "Artemis burned it one night thirty years ago, after terrifying the city in a fit of hysteria."

Lena blinked in disbelief.

"Your 'death' was a big blow to your family." She wiped her hands on her apron. "Nothing was the same again. Diana didn't get out of bed in eleven months, we all thought she was not going to stand it. Artemis spent three weeks roaming the jungle like a madwoman, murmuring things and attacking anyone who came too close. Only her sister could help her a little."

"That was in the past." Lena answered in an icy voice. "I'm already here, with them, and we won't separate again." She felt the strength of before come back.

 _No one will ever hurt my family again._

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **12:36 PM**

Maggie and Io entered the small stadium. She immediately saw the Banas, preparing to train in some kind of sport.

"Are you going to practice Midditch, Lady Maggie?" asked Io with a big smile. "I bet you would do it amazing!"

"Io..."

"Much better than all these Banas together!"

"Io, do you think you could do me a favor?" asked Maggie, putting a hand on her shoulder.

The little Amazon frowned. "Um... yes, of course. I would do anything you asked me to do, Lady Maggie."

"You know what a cheerleader is, Io?"

"Cheerleader?"

"Of course, in Man's World, having cheerleaders is extremely important. They're the ones who raise the team's spirits when they feel tired."

"As if Nike herself would give grace to her athletes?"

"...Exactly." Maggie nodded. "You think you could be a cheerleader? I think your people would love it! You could help them..."

Her eyes glittered. "That's a great idea, Lady Maggie! What do I have to do?"

"What do you think of making them a motivational song? Or some pretty colorful posters?"

"It's okay." Io smiled. "I'll be the best cheerleader for you, Lady Maggie!"

The girl turned and walked away. Maggie let out a sigh of relief. _I like you, Io, but now I need to concentrate._

Akila was walking slowly through the small stadium they used to practice, checking the young Banas standing in a row, side by side. Maggie walked over to her, watching her closely. _She reminds me of my old football coach, the homophobic bitch who forbade me to share the shower with my teammates._

Akila stopped beside a dark-skinned girl. "Korra."

"My Shim'Tar?"

"You don't play."

"B-but..."

"Your ankle is slightly hurt by that fight you had with Kuvira."

"It was to defend Asami!"

"Your reasons don't matter to me, Korra. You're not going to play."

"Akila, I know I'm not in my best shape now, but I know I can do it right."

"To do it right you have to be in your best shape. Stop acting like a brat and go sit down, Korra."

Akila continued walking and Maggie followed her. The Banas began to practice a very curious sport. The goal was to put some balls through giant hoops: one made of leather and called a Quaffle, two heavy called Bludgers, and a much smaller one called a Snitch.

The Shim'Tar sat on the stadium's stands, being followed by the detective.

"That girl was eager to play."

"Her desire to play won't make us win." Akila drew a knife and started playing with it, watching the young Banas play. "Korra will play next time."

"This game is very curious." _Make her talk about Artemis and Lena, be subtle_. "Have you ever played it?"

"Much better than all these sloths together." Akila smiled. "We had a game one year after the war ended."

"And you won?"

"Those Themys didn't know what hit them." Akila laughed. "You should have seen them, red with embarrassment at being beaten by a fourteen-year-old girl. Artemis and I were laughing for a week." Her smile was replaced by a grimace.

 _You're the one with more motives._ Maggie pretended to look at the players. _You think Artemis betrayed her people when she married Diana. I dare to say you're my main suspect. But are you really a traitor or are you just a bitch? I have to make you talk about that day. Come on, Sawyer, think, think._

Akila interrupted her thoughts. "I know what you're doing."

 _Oh, heck._

"Do you really think I was going to swallow that trash about 'watching and learning'? I'm not an idiot, Maggie of Sawyer."

 _Oh heck oh heck oh heck I need my gun..._

"You have had enough of the Themys." Akila laughed and nudged her. "You've grown tired of their empty faces, and you'd rather spend time with sane people. You have nothing to be ashamed of, Maggie of Sawyer."

Maggie blinked a couple of times. "What makes you think that?"

Akila pointed to a spot behind her. When Maggie turned, she found the little Io holding a colorful poster with a huge smile on her face.

 ** _*We love you, Lady Maggie! :D*_**

"Ishtar has given you the gift of patience, Maggie of Sawyer."

* * *

 **Diana of Themyscira**

 **3:05 PM**

Diana could hear the commotion formed by the voices of almost two thousand Amazons. The game was about to begin, only waiting for the Queen to walk out onto the balcony.

The brunette stared at the scene in front of her with clouded eyes of love. Her mother combed Lena's black hair in an elegant bun, full of little braids, taking care that no hair was tangled in her earrings. Hippolyta finished and kissed Lena's head. "I saw you train today with that wooden sword. You are doing it very well, Dear."

"I'll do better when I have a real sword." answered Lena, staring at her reflection in the mirror. "Learning something new is never easy, but I know I'll do it right."

"I admire that you have confidence in yourself, that is the most important thing in any training." Hippolyta rubbed her shoulders. "But it will be some time before you are ready for a real sword. After all, you just started."

"Right." Her daughter smiled mischievously. "Maybe someday I'll join your hero's club, Mother. I would be the first CEO superhero." Lena joked.

Diana heard Bruce's laugh in her mind, but she smiled at Lena's words. "You already fight for good in your own way, sweetie." _A much safer one._

"What is a CEO?" Asked the Queen.

"It means that I'm responsible for many people who have to obey all my orders." Lena touched one of the braids of her hair.

Diana took the glass of wine beside her and drank a little.

"Like the Empress Cat?" Her mother smiled. "I have only talked with her for forty minutes and I am already convinced that she is a special woman. Do you know if she is single?"

Diana spat out her wine.

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **3:08 PM**

The Coliseum was not crowded, but Alex saw so many Amazons that she could not help but feel like an ant in an anthill. She was on the balcony, sitting next to Kara and Artemis, waiting for Lena and Diana. Her sister seemed slightly concerned.

"But aren't they going to hurt themselves by playing this?"

"They're Amazons, Kara." Alex put her arm around her shoulders. "They aren't afraid of a couple of bruises or broken bones. They're warriors." Alex smiled.

"I'm glad at least you're having a good time, despite those Banas." At Kara's right side, Artemis hit her on the head with her telescope. "Hey! Why did you do that?!" she asked, more offended than hurt.

"Don't forget that I'm a Bana, journalist." The redhead returned to watch the arena with her telescope.

Kara smiled nervously. "Oh, right. I'm sorry... Alex, where's Maggie?"

 _With the Banas, but I can't tell her that_. "Maggie... will come in a moment. Don't worry about her. How's Lena's training going?" asked Alex quickly.

"Oh, very well! Lena's doing great. "

"I'm surprised you're not worried."

"I was... But not now."

Alex frowned. "Not now?"

"Lena asked me not to worry. My Potsticker will be the best in whatever she decides to do."

 _This is strange. Well, it doesn't have to be a bad thing. It was about time Kara relaxed a little._

At that moment Lena, Diana and the Queen came out from behind the curtain. All three wore light, snow-white dresses, their hair combed into many braids. Lena had a pair of large earrings in her ears, made of diamonds and amethysts, but her most beautiful jewel was her smile. Alex watched her sister blink many times and open her mouth.

"Do I look good, Puppy?"

"A-A lot." Her face turned red. "You look totally... perfect."

"Just get a room." Alex rolled her eyes.

"Journalist, stop looking at my daughter that way."

Lena laughed and bit her lip. Artemis got up to give her her seat so she could be with her girlfriend.

Kara took her hand and interlaced their fingers, still staring at the arena. "This sport seems to be very complicated."

"It's not really." Lena said. "It's a little confusing because of the flying balls. My Mother says it was invented by Hermes or something, and that the balls are blessed by him."

"Midditch." Alex smiled. "The goal is to pass the leather ball called the Quaffle through those hoops over there. At the same time you have to dodge the Bludgers, they can do you as much damage as a cannonball. There are two batters in each team, responsible for keeping them away from the rest of the players. And the game is over when the Seeker catches the little ball called the Snitch."

"How many points is that ball worth?" asked Kara.

"One hundred and fifty."

"And the Quaffle?"

"Ten."

"And why doesn't the whole team look for the Snitch then? Is that not an easier way to win? "

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..." : )

"... That's not the way to play Midditch, sister."

Lena took the telescope to look at the arena. "They're about to begin."

In the arena, both teams spoke with their respective captains. The Banas were around Akila and Amara. Instead, the Themysrians seemed to be having some sort of problem. The captain, Persephone ( _bitch_ ) moved her hands in frustration as she spoke with another Amazon.

The time of the Dedication came. Amara of Bana-Mighdall dedicated the game to Ra, Isis, and Ishtar, as well as Queen Karna and the host Queen, Hippolyta.

 _"...We also want to devote ourselves to Princess Lena, and give her a good example of strength and skill."_

 _Presumptuous to the end._

When Themyscira's turn came, Persephone dedicated the game to Hera, Aphrodite, Athena, Demeter and The Queen Hippolyta.

 _"...Our team hopes to delight our two princesses with our game. But I personally hope to delight the beautiful Maggie."_

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **3:29 PM**

 _"... Personally I hope to delight the beautiful Maggie."_

"What the hell?"

Maggie could not believe what she had just heard. She was sitting on the stands of Bana-Mighdall, next to the girl Akila had not allowed to play.

"Gee, it looks like you have an admirer." said Korra.

"I have no idea who she is." grunted Maggie.

 _Heck, Alex will probably be upset. I hope she stays calm._

In the arena, Persephone continued talking. " _But unfortunately, our Seeker Menalippe isn't able to be here now. Is there any volunteer among the public that offers to take her place?"_

Maggie heard the hum of thousands of voices talking in unison. _This is a big problem at the last moment. What if…?_

She watched in horror as Alex rose from her seat on the balcony.

"I offer myself!"

 _Fuck._

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **3:30 PM**

"I offer myself!"

"Alex!" Kara tried to get her sister to sit down again.

Alex ignored her. "No, Kara. That idiot's gotten on my last nerve."

Artemis looked at her in alarm. "Alexandra..."

"Let no one dare stop me."

Alex made her way between Lena, and Artemis and stepped off the balcony.

Kara turned to the Queen. "Do something!"

"Alex of Danvers has decided to participate on her own." The Queen shook her head. "To prohibit her from playing to protect her would be like considering her weak. It would be a dishonor."

"Who cares about the dishonor!? They're going to hurt my sister!"

"Kara."

The Kryptonian looked at Lena at her side. Her face was serious... and her eyes were bright.

"Alex is going to be fine and you're not going to worry, do you understand?"

Kara nodded.

 _Alex is going to be fine and I'm not going to worry. I understand_ _._

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **3:34 PM**

Persephone smiled. "Are you sure you're strong and fast enough?"

"If you keep talking, we won't win." _Stay away from Maggie._

The teams were in position. Alex stood at the Seeker's place, on the side of the arena, near where little Io sang songs of encouragement.

The royal guards took out the balls. Alex heard the voice of the blind guard start counting to three. The little Snitch was twisting in the hands of the bald one, flapping its wings impatiently. _Hermes couldn't make his balls slide smoothly across the floor, no… the balls have to fly._

Little Io jumped a couple of times. "T-H-E ..."

 ** _"One!"_**

"M-Y-S ..."

 ** _"Two!"_**

"C-Y-R ..."

 ** _"THREE!"_**

The balls went flying. Alex started to run after the Snitch.

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **3:36 PM**

 _Shit shit shit shit_

"I'm going to kill her."

"Only if she survives this." Korra shrugged.

 _Shit. "_ The danger of death was a lie, isn't it?"

"Um, it's a friendly game, I don't think anyone will die. But no one is going to get out of there without a couple of bruises or a broken bone."

Maggie rose from her seat and hurried toward the arena.

* * *

 **Runner danvers**

 **3:37 PM**

The golden ball flew around one of the Bana batters. The Amazon got in between one of her teammates and a Bludger, hitting the ball with all her force to Alex's head. She dodged the Budger and ran at full speed toward the little golden spot. Themiscyra had the Quaffle, Persephone passed it to a brunette and the brunette passed it to a redhead. The redhead dodged a Bana and threw the ball through the hoop, scoring the first ten points.

The Snitch took a violent turn and flew to where a brown-haired Bana picked up the Quaffle. Alex dodged a pair of batters and crawled between the legs of a third. The Snitch chased the Bana with the ball. Alex jumped an Amazon and with whom she almost crashed. For a moment she lost sight of the brunette. When she found her again, she ran back to her. The brunette was about to throw the Quaffle into the hoop but Alex watched in horror as a bludger hit her shoulder.

Persephone took the Quaffle and passed it to a companion. Alex concentrated on the Snitch. The Bana Seeker ( _Amara!_ ) ran at full speed to reach it. Alex felt the sweat running down her forehead as she continued to run. Amara almost reached the Snitch, but Alex pushed another Bana to get there in time. The agent jumped on the Bana Seeker and they both fell to the floor.

"It seems that you keep getting in my way." The Amazon took her off.

* * *

 **Kara Danvers.**

 **3:48 PM**

Kara saw her sister crashing violently into the other team's Seeker.

Artemis rose from her chair. "I'll go get Epione."

"Who's Epione?" Lena asked.

"Our healer. If Alexandra is going to keep playing, at least I'll have the healer ready."

"I won't let this go too far." Diana told her wife.

"You'd better not. "

Kara saw Artemis go out to get the healer.

She knew she should be worried.

But she couldn't.

 _(Alex is going to be fine and you're not going to worry, you understand?)_

 ** _She. was. not. able. to. worry_**

* * *

 **In pain Danvers**

 **3:48 PM**

Alex sprang up and ran after Amara. Two Amazons crashed to her right, almost knocking her down. Alex felt the weariness on her chest, her breath faster than a train. _'Breathing is the most important thing in a battle,_ ' said Artemis's voice in her mind.

Alex took a deep breath, filling her lungs with oxygen, and ran after the Snitch. Amara was about to reach it but a Bludger reached her. The same Bludger hurried toward her. Alex ducked her head in time, feeling the ball buzz in her ear. The Quaffle fell in her way, followed by five Amazons who jumped to catch it. The Amazons fell. Alex followed her impulse and jumped on them, stumbling and dirtying herself in the mud, getting up immediately.

Nothing stood between her and the precious winged ball. Another Bludger headed toward her, but was batted by a batter of her team. Alex reached out as she approached the snitch, closer and closer, closer and closer, more and more...

The Quaffle collided with the Snitch. Alex threw herself on both of them.

And seven Amazons threw themselves upon her.

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **3:57 PM**

Maggie reached the arena as Alex ran at full speed towards the Snitch. Io was encouraging the players, but her voice was barely heard in the clamor.

"Themiscyra! Themiscyra! The-!"

"Alex!" Of course, she did not hear it. "Alex!"

Alex jumped to catch the Snitch, but the Quaffle got in her way and her girlfriend landed on both.

And seven Amazons landed on her.

"ALEX!"

Maggie ran into the arena, pulling away an Amazon who stood in her way. The detective took the hair from one of the ones above Alex and pulled hard.

"Damn it, get out of there, damn animals! _Alex!_ "

Maggie used all her strength to remove a blonde from the human pile. At that moment, an orange whirlpool appeared at her side, removing a dark-skinned Amazon from above Alex. Artemis grunted obscenities in a low voice as she pulled the last Amazon away.

Maggie knelt down. Alex was panting like a fish out of the water, her eyes wide open and both balls in her hands.

"Alex! Damn, she can't breathe!"

"Epione!" shouted the redhead.

A tanned Amazon knelt beside Alex. "She has hit her lungs." The Amazon put both hands on her torso and began massaging it hard, trying to relax the respiratory tract.

Alex's gasps began to stop. Maggie had one hand in her dirty hair, and the other was probably bruising her arm. Finally, Alex's breathing subsided.

"You have no idea how stupid you are."

Alex smiled and raised her right hand. "The Snitch."

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **4:32 PM**

Alex was sitting in Epione's infirmary. The Amazon was touching her shoulder, where the pain was much more intense.

"It's dislocated." said the healer, frowning. "I have to put it back in place. It will hurt a little."

Maggie took her hand tightly. Artemis squeezed her good shoulder, and gave her a rag to put it in her mouth.

Alex nodded, holding Maggie's hand so tight she could have broken a bone.

Epione put her shoulder back into place with a quick movement. The pain ran through her arm as if she had been bitten by a snake. Alex bit the rag in her mouth with all her strength.

Kara entered the room at that moment. "Alex?"

The agent took the rag out of her mouth and tried to smile at her sister. To her surprise, Kara looked very calm, as if nothing to worry about had happened.

Epione pulled away a little and Kara approached.

"Alex, did you hurt yourself?"

 _She really must be angry._

Alex stroked Maggie's thumb. "I'm okay, the healer repaired my shoulder."

"Consider yourself lucky, Lady Alex."

Alex took the Snitch from the seat next to her. The ball flapped a couple of times. "Isn't she a beauty? And she's all mine."

"It's a stupid ball with wings. You could have seriously hurt yourself!" Maggie took the Snitch. "What the hell were you thinking?"

"Persephone..."

"Were you jealous of a woman I've never talked to?"

" _I hope to delight the beautiful Maggie._ That was... um, Kara, are you okay?"

Her sister was staring at her. "Sure... You'll be fine, and I shouldn't worry."

 _What's wrong?_ "You alright?"

"Yeah... I'm just... I'm glad you didn't hurt yourself much more." Kara blinked a couple of times. "Is there anything I can do to make you feel better? Lena and Diana are outside, waiting for news."

"Go tell them I'm fine." Alex sighed. "Could you go with her, Artemis? I'd like to talk to Maggie for a moment."

The redhead nodded and rose from the chair, leaving the infirmary with Kara and the healer. Maggie did not take her eyes from hers at any moment. When they were alone, the detective spoke.

"You know you didn't even win, don't you? The Banas won by twenty points."

"That wasn't important."

"Yes? And what was important? Tell me. Hurting yourself to prove... what?"

"Persephone was being a pain in the ass." Alex pursed her lips.

"And your solution was to get yourself into that carnage? You should just have ignored her."

"Maggie, I can't do that." Alex sighed. "I just can't stand it. This morning in the armory she..."

"She was in the armory?" Her eyes widened in horror. "She was in the armory where you were showing the case notes to Artemis?"

"She didn't hear anything." Alex assured her. "She didn't see the notes either, I promise. They're in a safe place in my luggage."

Maggie sighed and nodded. "You wanted to prove you were strong like them."

"I wanted to prove you have a brave girlfriend." Alex took her hand. "That will not stop for anything or anyone, much less if it's something that has to do with you."

"You're still an idiot."

"This idiot has caught the Snitch, Detective Sawyer." Alex picked up the little ball with wings again. "And since it's given me so much trouble, I'll keep it."

* * *

 **Akila of Bana-Mighdall**

 **4:37**

Akila found Amara still in the stadium arena, walking in circles without raising her head. The arena looked as disheveled as a raging sea, but the Shim'Tar barely noticed it as she approached the young Bana.

"Amara."

She turned to face her, crossing her arms and looking upset. "Mother."

"Amara." Akila reached for her. "Why are you here looking at the sand and not celebrating with us?"

"I have nothing to celebrate." answered the young Bana. "I didn't catch the Snitch."

Akila sighed deeply, remembering her childhood and how exacting some mothers had been with their daughters. "You can't always catch the Snitch, Amara. We have won anyway, you should be happy."

"Aren't you disappointed?"

"By you?" Akila put a hand on her shoulder. "Of course not. Now come on, Xena has opened the barrel of beer."

Both Banas began to walk to leave the Coliseum. At twenty yards, Akila's foot stepped on something different from the sand, something that made a creak. The Shim'Tar looked down, where an envelope of brown paper stained with mud was under her foot.

"What is this?"

Akila leaned over and picked up the envelope. Despite being dirty, she recognized the characteristic form of the writing. _Why does everything have to have letters nowadays?_

"This must be from the foreigners." Akila sighed. "Read it, Amara."

"You know I can teach you to read at any time, right?"

"And for what, if I have you? Read it, it must say Maggie of Sawyer or Alex of Danvers."

Her daughter took the envelope, trying to wipe the mud stains that hid some letters. "N... o... t..." Amara bit her lip. "I think it says 'Case notes'."

"It must belong to Maggie of Sawyer. She catches criminals or something."

"Like in Gabrielle's stories?" Amara smiled. "You know, those where someone is killed and a very clever person should find out who did it. There must be something interesting in here."

"Amara..." Akila watched her daughter break the paper carefully. "Amara, that's not yours. It's a lack of respect to meddle in other people's affairs. Don't make me hit you, you're old."

Amara's face turned white. "Isis..."

"Amara?"

Her daughter looked at her with angry eyes. "They have taken us for idiots."


	26. Day Four: When Hunters Bleed

**The next chapter is Rated T for Violence**  
 **I also hope you have enjoyed every moment of humor that has had this story so far :)**

* * *

 _Lena was standing in the middle of the Arena of the Coliseum, her body stained with sand and dirt. The sun made her eyes narrow. Lex's face was as calm as ever._

 _"What did you do to Kara!?"_

 _Lex walked over to her. **You did not want her to worry.**_

 _"Get it off! Whatever it is, undo it now! And NEVER dare to do something to her again!"_

 ** _Are you sure?_** _Lex stood still. **Because she thinks she can protect you, that she can take care of you, and that is not true. Only I can protect you now. Her concern is not necessary**._

 _"Undo. what you did. to Kara. And don't you dare to manipulate other people again, or I'll find a way to..."_

 ** _To what? To get rid of me, Gap?_** _Lex shook his head. **Do not get confused, human. My priority is to protect you from those who try to hurt you, but that does not mean that I obey your orders.**_

 _"Do you expect me to obey yours?"_

 ** _What I expect is a peaceful coexistence._**

 _"Then never mess with my friends. And never, never mess with Kara. Undo what you did to her right now, I don't care if she harasses me with questions."_

 ** _I will not let her do it._** _Lex closed his eyes. **But if that is what you ask me, however you want.**_

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **1:22 AM**

Kara woke suddenly in a bed wet with sweat. Her eyes without glasses watched the darkness around her, as clearly as if it were daylight. Lena was sleeping with her back to her, slightly tense, silent as a mouse.

She rubbed one leg against the other. _What a long day... I shouldn't have eaten that last kilo of surubí... And that stupid violent game made no sense. Honestly, I can't believe Alex would want to..._

 _Alex got hurt._

Kara rose abruptly.

 _Alex got hurt!_

The Kryptonian almost broke the door when she opened it at full speed. Forty milliseconds later, Kara was at the far end of the hall, opening the door to Alex's room. Her sister was sleeping with her arm under her head and Maggie's hand on her belly.

 _"Aleeeeex!"_

Kara landed on her sister's stomach. Alex awoke suddenly, accidentally kicking Maggie who fell out of bed with a **_PAF._**

"Alex! What the hell were you thinking!?"

 _"Kara!?"_

"They belong together..." murmured Maggie rubbing her head.

"How did you think getting yourself into that damn violent game was a good idea!? Do you have any idea how scared I was!?"

"Kar..."

"Tell me who they were! Tell me their names! I'm going to throw them into space!"

"You're hurting me..."

Kara gasped and got off from above her sister.

"Kara, what the hell happened?" Alex rubbed her ribs.

"What do you mean? You got hurt!"

"And did you feel the need to come running to see me... in the middle of the night?"

"Of course!" Kara hugged her again, burying her face in her shoulder. "You'd have seriously hurt yourself... Sister, don't do that again. The Amazons play very rough, and if anything happens to you..."

"Easy, Kara." Alex hugged her sister. "I'm fine, calm down."

Maggie rose from the floor and returned to the bed. "You two keep with your quality sisters time. I'm going to sleep, thank you very much."

"Alex, can I stay here with you for a while? I want to make sure you're okay."

"Oh, Kara, I was planning to have sex in the morning..."

Maggie hit her girlfriend with the pillow. Kara shuddered in horror, but her sister just laughed.

"I love that face."

"If you weren't hurt, I'd follow Maggie's example and hit you with the pillow."

Maggie growled. "Kara, if you're going to stay here, shut up. It's half past two in the morning and some people need sleep."

Kara stayed quiet, lying next to Alex and resting her head on her shoulder.

"I love you, Alex."

"I know." She stroked her hair. "I love you too."

* * *

 **Diana of Themiscyra**

 **9:33 AM**

Diana looked at the figs in the fruit bowl in front of her, trying to remember their taste. For years she had forbidden to serve figs at any meal, but now that Lena had returned, the cook had apparently believed that her aversion to that fruit was no longer justified. But Diana could not help but look at them and remember the horrible morning when she lost her baby.

Artemis pushed the figs away from her sight, and in their place she put a bowl of milk in front of her.

"You need to eat if you're going up the mountain." Missy said without looking up from her cereal.

"We won't go up to the top, only to the Oracle. We'll be back tomorrow morning."

"Why does your mother still go to the Oracle?" Her wife frowned. "Menalippe never hears your Gods' voice."

"Only in the past two hundred years, my love. Before the Gods used to talk to us often." Diana added cereal to her glass of milk. "I have no doubt that one day they will do it again."

"Are you going to take the girls with you?"

"I'm going to ask them if they want to come. They wouldn't see much on the way, just old temples."

"It's a good opportunity for Lena to learn to ride, don't you think?"

As if Artemis had invoked her, Lena entered through the door at that moment. She had dark circles around her eyes and her hair was slightly disheveled. _Looks like someone didn't have a good night._ Her daughter sat at the table beside them, taking the plate of figs Diana had previously rejected. "Morning."

"Good morning, Sweetie."

"Hello, Princess."

"Kara isn't here?" Lena frowned. "She never misses a meal. When I woke up she wasn't with me."

"That's because unfortunately she was with us." Maggie came into the room, her hair down and still in her pajamas. "Your girlfriend snores like a train, Luthor. How you get to sleep is a mystery to me."

"Kara slept with you?"

"She woke us up at early morning, worried about Alex." Maggie stole one of Lena's figs and sat next to Diana. "She must have had some nightmare or something."

"Is she still asleep?"

"Hugging Alex as a boa. I didn't have the heart to wake them up." Maggie bit the fruit. A lock of her hair slipped out of place and fell in front of her eyes. Diana gently put it back into its place. "And Alex slept holding that ball with wings and accidentally stuck it in my eye. First that bottle..."

"Mr Sanvers."

"Little Sanvers, first that bottle and now this." Maggie sighed.

Artemis laughed. "Diana used to sleep with a teddy bear when I met her."

"Wow, thanks Missy, why don't you tell Kara so she can make it a new?" Diana blushed. After eating her last cereal tablespoon, she looked at Maggie and Lena. "Would you like to go up the mountain? My mother and I are going to visit the Oracle and some small temples."

"I'll pass, thank you." Maggie tried to take another of Lena's figs, but the CEO hit her hand. "Alex and I are going to fish and practice archery. We've already made plans."

 _Sure, I think i know what kind of plans. Oh Aphrodite, your power wreak havoc on people._

"I go." Lena smiled. "I always wanted to go to the Delphos Oracle, but I never had time."

"That's a lot bigger, sweetie."

Lena shrugged. "I'll settle for now. Kara will love the idea."

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **11:43 AM**

Alex left the palace with a yawn, her arm around her sister's shoulders. Kara's lips were still tight, her body hard as a granite wall. _Enough, something isn't okay._

Alex stopped. "Kara."

Her sister looked at her with large, sad puppy eyes.

"Kara, is something wrong?"

"I... I don't know." Kara shook her head. "Do you remember the first party you took me to? When I was fifteen?"

"I remember." _I could never forget it._

"I never told you why I started crying in the garden." Kara rubbed her arms as if she were cold. "It's just that we were there... And all the people were talking around me... And you were talking to that guy in the leather jacket... And suddenly I felt bad." Kara took off her glasses. "I remember it as if it had been yesterday. I felt awful, because... It was like we were all alone, Alex."

"I don't understand you."

"Everyone was talking and laughing around me, but it was as if no one was actually listening, as if no one really cared what the other people were saying, and I felt... alone, helpless. I know it sounds crazy, Alex."

"No, it's not crazy." Alex stroked her sister's cheeks. "You were a little girl, you still hadn't adapted at all. It was my fault, I shouldn't have forced you to go."

"I feel like I'm in the middle of a big garden, seeing things around me." Kara took a deep breath. "Things that no one else can see. Things I don't understand."

"What things?" Alex rubbed her shoulder.

"I-I don't know, things like... like... I don't know, it's t-this place. I miss National City." Kara bit her lip. "I miss J'onn, Winn and M'gan. I miss Cat, Carter and James. I even miss Snapper. I can't wait to go home."

"Hey..." Alex stroked her cheek. "Karamazov, it's okay, it's only two days to go home, but if you talk to Lena maybe..."

"No." Kara sighed. "It's because of her that I'm here. I'm not going to ruin it... What I need is to go up the mountain with her, keep my mind occupied. I just woke up on the wrong side of the bed today, it'll eventually go away. "

"You sure?"

"Yeah." Kara smiled. "Don't play Midditch again in my absence."

"Ha, that kid's game? And what for?" Alex pulled her golden Snitch out of her pocket. The small ball flapped a couple of times. "I already have my souvenir here."

Alex and Kara arrived at the place where the Queen, the two princesses and two royal guards were preparing the horses. The Agent noticed that the size of the animals was considerably larger than normal. Lena was already on a gray mare, with Maggie helping her adjust the mount.

"And my horse?" asked Kara.

Lena smiled like the cat that ate the canary. "We're going to share horse, Puppy, of course... I would feel so alone on this great horse..."

 _Luthor wants to take advantage of my sister on a horse. The perversion of this woman has no limits._

Kara blushed. "Um, yes, of course, we'll share horse. It'll be safer for you, I can hold you if you fall."

"Mmmm, Kara, you're my hero." Lena bit her lip, looking at the blonde as if she was some kind of delicious dessert.

Alex shuddered. "Lena, don't make that face. You're going to give me nightmares."

Maggie approached her girlfriend, kissing her on the lips and then on the cheek. Behind her, Diana greeted her with a smile on her lips.

"You can still change your mind and come with us, you know?"

"Thanks Diana, but it will be next time." Alex rubbed Maggie's shoulder.

When Kara was behind Lena on the horse, The Queen Hippolyta gave the order to advance. Alex stood next to Maggie, watching the six women disappear slowly toward the mountain.

"Maggie, do you think we should have told them about the Banas?"

"I don't think so." Her girlfriend took her hand. "Come on, we'll tell them when we have more than just suspicions."

"It could have been any of them... Xena, Gabrielle, Azula..."

"...Or Akila." The detective sighed. "I have to get her to talk about that day."

* * *

 **The Shim'Tar**

 **12:13 PM**

Akila of Bana-Mighdall was sitting on a log, by the fathoms of a dead fire. All day long she had not spoken to anyone other than Amara, and that was just so that she would give the orders to the others on what to do. Instead, Akila had been sitting on the same place for almost two hours, playing with her knife, watching the bright blade and staring into her own brown eyes in it.

 _'Well, at least this brood has your eyes.'_

 _'My beautiful lemon green eyes of whom the whole world falls in love, I know. I hope she also have my charm.'_

 _'That if Diana's blood has not ruined the poor girl... Haha, look Artie, she's got her tongue out. I think she likes me. Hey, Lena! I'm Akila and you'd better be good with me. Maybe your mother is my Shim'Tar, but here you'll have to earn our respect, girl.'_

 _'When Lena grows up and beat you up for your insolence, I'll be the first to laugh.'_

 _'I hope you come home a couple of times before that.'_

 _'Do you miss to bite the dust, Akila?... Hey, what are you doing? Keep that knife away, insensate.'_

 _'Insensate? I just wanted to give it to Lena. Look, she likes it.'_

 _'She likes everything that shines. She has already broken three Hippolyta's diamond necklaces.'_

 _'Hippolyta, the Royal Mother-in-Law. How do you bear her?'_

 _'It's not easy, she hasn't accepted me and I don't think she ever does. She's always looking for a way to annoy me. Just look at whom- '_

Akila was interrupted by Amara, who cleared her throat softly at her side. She looked at her with empty eyes. "They're approaching."

"The boats are ready?"

"Yes."

"The fire?"

"Ready, My Shim'Tar."

"I'm your mother, Amara." Akila rose from the log. "Call me Mother."

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **12:20 PM**

Maggie heard Alex growl in a low voice as they finally neared the Banas camp, after being accidentally lost. _All the trees are the same here. I would sell my soul for a GPS._

Alex pulled a log out of her way. "Where's Io when she's needed?"

"She's making a sword." answered Maggie. "She began to talk incessantly about how much she liked Babylonian swords, so I asked her to make me one."

"Why did you not send her directly to Babylon?"

"And you say I would be an impatient mother?"

Finally Maggie pushed aside the last bush, reaching the Egyptian Amazons' camp, but the detective scowled when she noticed that the tents were gone and there were only ten Banas sitting around a bonfire. Akila was watching the flames with a small knife spinning in her hands.

Then she looked up and their eyes met.

And Maggie knew it at once.

"Alex!"

Alex drew her gun and shot the nearest Bana, a brunette woman who repelled the bullets with her bracelets as if they were flies before falling on her. Maggie was not able to pull out her gun when two blond women beat her with the force of a train, taking her gun and throwing it to the floor. Alex managed to fight a little more before a young Bana hit her from the back with a log.

Maggie felt one of them pull her hair hard to push her forward. The pain made her bite her lip until the Amazon threw her back on the ground, in front of Akila and the other Banas. She heard the noise of Alex falling beside her.

"If you touch her I'll kill you!"

 _No, Alex._

Akila looked at her completely calm. "Amara."

 ** _Bam!_** Alex's head fell back by the force of the slap. She looked at her with mortal fury.

"You don't know who you're dealing with."

"Amara."

 ** _Bam!_** Her lip bled.

"I'll kill you." Alex smiled with hate. "I killed aliens with super strength with my own hands. What do you think I'm going to do to you?"

"Amara."

 ** _Bam!_** This time Alex did not get up.

Akila looked at the dark haired amazon, the one that had attacked Alex. "Azula, find the Snitch in her pocket."

Maggie watched helplessly as the Bana smiled and bent down to check Alex's pockets, pulling the Snitch out of her pants. The Amazon gave it to her Shim'Tar.

Akila took the little winged ball and held it to her face. "Go find Artemis." Then she released it. The Snitch flew to the trees, swift as a bird in flight.

"Akila, let me explain..."

"Azula."

 ** _Krack!_** The mad-faced brunette kicked her head with the strength of a horse. Maggie growled in pain, spitting a leaf that had slipped into her mouth when she fell to the floor.

Akila stood up. "You'll speak when you're allowed to speak, we still need Artemis to come. Take them to the boats."

Alex gasped. "Boats?"

"Not in the head, Amara."

The Amazon's foot hit her wounded shoulder. Maggie wanted to be unconscious so she would not have to hear the horrible groan that escaped her lips.

"You'll say what you have to say in the boats." Akila took her knife. "If I like what you have to say, you'll live. If I don't like it, I'll cut you throats and throw you into the sea."

Alex murmured so silently that Maggie could barely hear her. "Sacred... day."

"Just a slap, Amara."

The Amazon slapped her with her open hand. Alex stared at Amara, neither of them looking away.

"Sacreds day prevents killing on the island." explained Akila, looking at Maggie. "That's why we'll talk in the water."

* * *

 **Artemis of Bana-Mighdall**

 **12:26**

Artemis entered Io's armory, immediately getting a wave of hot air on her face that made her step back. The blacksmith was watching as the metal melted, standing with her back to the redhead.

"Hey, Io." The heat was almost unbearable. "Blacksmith, I'm talking to you."

"What do you want, Artemis?" Io replied without turning to look at her.

"I need you to make two pairs of new bracelets." _Why would Kara want the bracelets? The girl is bulletproof... Diana and her sentimentality_. "Make them with an alloy of iron and bronze. They should be tough but beautiful. They're for Maggie Sawyer and Alexandra's sister."

"Alright." said the Blacksmith softly. "I'll start doing them right away."

Artemis closed the door to the armory, moving away from that dreadful heat. The redhead wiped the sweat from her forehead as she walked away. _Well, I think I'll go hunting. I have to do something productive while I wait for Diana to come back._

Suddenly, a yellow flying spot caught her eye. A Snitch was fast approaching her, shining painfully in the sunlight. The little ball began to turn around her impatiently.

"Hey!" Artemis caught it with a quick movement. "Who sent you? Alexandra?" The little ball flapped impatiently. "No, it's not from Alex... _Oh, shit._ "

* * *

 **Akila of Bana-Mighdall**

 **12:41 PM**

The three boats moved away about twenty yards from the shore. Akila watched the oars break the water and cause waves around them. In the other two, four archers pointed in the direction of the prisoners, tied tightly in front of her and watched over by Amara and Azula.

The Shim'Tar gave the order to stop, squinting under the glare of the sun. Azula had her sword unsheathed, holding it in her left hand. Amara simply played with a small dagger, without giving up in to the duel of looks she was having with Sawyer's consort.

Akila looked at Maggie, who was obviously trying to look calm. "I want you to understand one thing: whatever your true intentions, you have lied to us, and we pay the lies with blood." said Akila to Maggie, wishing the other woman would not open her mouth so she would not have to hit her. "The amount of blood we're going to demand... That's up to you." She turned to Alex. "You can't talk, I'm not interested in your stupid threats. If you open your mouth without my permission, I'll have you whipped your insolence." She looked back at Maggie. "You can talk, Maggie of Sawyer."

The young woman looked at her with old eyes. "You're making a mistake."

Akila arched an eyebrow. "A mistake, eh? The only mistake I see here is yours, little one, and it's that you tried to fool us."

"How do you think the Queen will react when she finds out about this?"

"In that case, we'll tell her the truth." Akila shrugged. "We will tell her that her guests were vile treacherous rats who were spying on us. Here we're not committing any crime, neither in Themiscyra's law nor in ours."

Maggie sighed deeply, looking at her consort. "We work chasing criminals. We're chasing a criminal."

"Criminal, eh?" _This is new._ "What kind of criminal?"

"We believe that the person who kidnapped Lena when she was two had an accomplice." The girl bit her wounded lip. "A person who helped get her out of Bana-Mighdall."

The realization fell on her like a bucket of cold water. "You're looking for a traitor."

"Yes."

"You're crazier than your consort." Akila shook her head in disbelief. "For an Amazon there is no worse crime than treason, it's punished with a dreadful death. Why on earth would a Bana betray Artemis?

Azula cleared her throat. "Talking of the devil..."

Akila looked toward the shore, where a red-haired woman walked quietly and threw herself into the water. Akila clenched her grip on her little knife, not bothering to hide her discomfort. Thirty seconds later, Artemis's hands gripped the edge of the boat and she pushed herself up. Akila saw the wet redhead sit next to Amara, her green eyes glittering with fury as she saw the blood on Danvers' chin. Akila squeezed her knife even more tightly. "You should have taught her to talk less when someone has her captive."

"Silence isn't her forte." Her face remained impassive.

Akila sighed. _It's not the forte of any of us_. "Now that you're here, Artemis, I hope you can shed some light on this folly about a traitor."

"I'm sorry to tell you it's not a folly." Her milk sister looked at her with tired eyes, old woman's eyes. "You know the surveillance as well as I do: nobody would be able to enter without internal help."

"Artemis... How dare you?" Akila trembled with anger. "How dare you suspect your own sisters? What the Tartarus is wrong with you?"

Artemis brought her hand to her waist, fast as a snake. Akila knew her well, and she knew she had less than a second to put her knife in Maggie of Sawyer's throat. Her milk sister's eyes flashed with fear ( _she was never afraid before_ ) when Maggie let out a groan of surprise.

"Throw your weapons into the water." grunted The Shim'Tar. "All of them, or Sawyer dies now."

Akila watched as Artemis' hand shook slightly as she began throwing all her weapons overboard. _Five daggers, three knives..._

"Akila, they weren't trying to do any harm to the tribe."

"They lied and deceived us." The Shim'Tar watched the two prisoners. Sawyer was breathing heavily and Danvers was shaking with rage. "You too, Artemis. You suspected us as if we were wild animals. You could have talked to me, or did you suspect me too?"

Akila found the answer in her eyes.

"You suspected me." She jerked away from Maggie.

"Yes, I suspected all of you. It was all my idea." she said, trying to be convincing. _Liar_. "Let them go... They followed my orders, they don't have to die."

"No one is going to die here, Artemis." Akila put her knife in her pocket and pulled out a pair of iron handcuffs, throwing them at the redhead's feet. "But we have been offended and the offenses are paid with blood, you know it. Put the handcuffs on, or I'll rip out their eyes. Azula, give the order to go back to the camp."

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **15:10 PM**

Maggie did not know if she was sweating from heat or fear. Amara warmed the sword's blade in the fire in front of her. _This is a nightmare_. Alex was grunting like a wild animal. _Please Alex don't speak please don't speak please._ Artemis was immobilized by the iron handcuffs, with chains in both her arms and her legs.

And Maggie did the impossible not to tremble, failing miserably. _We're going get to out of this. We're going get to out of this. Diana will come to save us, Kara will melt them all for hurting Alex, the Queen will come with an army. We're going get to out of this, I know._

The five Amazons were in front of them with faces carved in stone. The Shim'Tar stared at them one by one. "All of you should be punished, but the damage has been minimal, so only one will have to pay the price. The punishment for lying is amputation."

"Akila..." Artemis looked at her with bright eyes. "Akila, don't do this, they're just girls, don't..."

"Did you warn them what could happen?" Artemis did not respond. "If you didn't, this is your fault. If you did, they're stupid _'girls_ '."

Akila leaned forward in front of Maggie. The detective could see millions of mixed emotions in those brown eyes, without being able to identify any.

"Was it your idea or your consort?"

"It was mine!" Alex shouted. "Get away from her, psycho bitch! It was my idea!"

 _No_

 ** _Bam!_**

Akila's fist impacted on her jaw. "I told you not to speak without my permission." She rubbed her hand. "Disobedience has consequences, girl... Bring the whip."

 _No no no no no no no no no_

Azula ( _evil she is evil_ ) and the two blondes raised Alex by force. One of the blondes was kicked in the face, but it was like kicking a concrete wall. The two blondes held her girlfriend like steel pincers. Azula broke Alex's shirt with a knife, revealing her back. _NO_

"Akila, no..." Maggie moaned. "Please, she was just trying to protect me."

"I warned her what would happen if she opened her mouth." Akila looked like an old woman. "But if she doesn't understand it in a good way, she'll have to understand in a bad way."

Xena came back with the whip. Akila took it in her left hand, ignoring Maggie's pleading and Alex's struggles. The Shim'Tar had raised her arm when Artemis spoke.

"I take them." The redhead smiled a little. "Don't hurt her, I'll receive the punishment."

 _"NO!_ " Shouted Alex. "No, don't listen to her! I was the one who spoke! Don't hurt them, it was me!"

"Azula, my patience has reached zero. Make her close her mouth."

"Making her unconscious?"

"Gag her."

The brunette woman rolled her eyes and tied a rag in Alex's mouth. Maggie just wished she could see her in the eyes, to offer her some kind of comfort, even if it were empty.

Akila turned to the red-haired Amazon. "Do you take them?"

"I take them." Artemis sighed. "It's just a few lashes."

"You were my Shim'Tar, I don't desire to humiliate you like that. No way, this idiot will get what she deserves."

"You can't deny me the right to take her punishment. Those are the rules, did you forget it? Or do you forget that I used to take my sister's punishments?"

Akila glared at her. "Xena, Gabrielle, take her to the forest. It would be dishonor if the young ones see her humiliated."

Azula sighed. "Don't you think you're being too lenient?"

"Shut the fuck up. Now, Xena. "

The tall, muscular woman and one of the blonde women lifted Artemis. Akila gave them the whip, avoiding looking at the redhead. Alex tried again to free herself of her captors with renewed strength, but it was as if a fly tried to free itself of two spiders. Maggie's eyes met the other woman's greens, eyes in which there was no fear, only a sadness so deep it was painful.

Alex screamed inside the gag, her eyes unfocused of hatred, anger, sadness, and deep down, fear.

 _This is all my fault._

Akila leaned down again. "Was it your idea or your consort?"

Maggie heard a **_ZAS!_** coming from behind her. _Artemis..._

"It was my... idea."

Akila sighed. "Are you sure?"

"It was my idea. E-Everything." Her lips trembled, but she did not cry _. I'll endure what I have to endure_. "It was all my idea. I wanted you to trust me, and ask about Lena's kidnapping. Alex just got into this to protect me and Artemis said it was a bad idea... B-but I didn't listen." Maggie sobbed. "Don't hurt Alex."

Akila did not even blink for four seconds. "You want to hear something funny? If you had asked me directly instead of trying to deceive me, I would have talked to you... But instead you treated us as if we were dogs, as all foreigners do."

Maggie stared at the flames of the fire, forcing herself not to cry.

"Let's get this over with." Akila got to her feet. "Raise her and bring her by the fire."

Two Banas forced her to stand up. Maggie heard Alex's muffled groans, painful as a wounded animal. _Calm down, everything it's gonna be alright._

Maggie was approached to the fire, letting out a gasp at the proximity of such heat. "What are you going to do?"

"I told you, the punishment for lying to me is amputation. I'll feed the fire with a piece of you, and then I'll let you go."

"Could not you forgive me? I'm sorry."

"I'm afraid not, Maggie." Akila sighed. "The offenses are paid with blood... I would like it to be with Danvers' blood, but you have decided it will be yours."

Amara handed the knife to her mother. "Should I blindfold the other?"

"No, I want her to see." Akila looked at Alex. "I want you to see what the lies causes, and I want you to remember the sacrifices we can make for love."

Maggie could not look at Alex... She could not hear anything either. _She's too quiet. Please, Alex, don't provoke them any more._

Akila removed a lock of her hair, leaving her ear in sight. She's _going to cut my ear off._ The Amazon raised up the knife, without breaking the eye contact. Finally Maggie gave in and closed her eyes. _I don't want to look._

Maggie heard the sound of the knife descending through the air.

.

.

.

But she felt nothing.

When she opened her eyes, Akila of Bana-Mighdall had a lock of her hair in her hand. The Amazon threw it into the fire.

"The offense is paid."

Maggie felt a tear fall from her eye.

Akila took her chin and stared into her eyes. "When you treat people like savages, they become savages, Maggie of Sawyer." She released her. "Amara, untie her."

Maggie did not see Amara approaching, nor did she feel her hands being released. She stared at Akila walking to Alex and Azula.

"Go get Xena and Artemis. They're free."

"But the girl hasn't paid for her offense!"

 ** _Bam!_** Akila slapped Azula.

"The fire has devoured a part of her body, the offense is paid. Don't you dare question my orders." Akila bent to look Alex in the eye. "And as for you, if I ever see your ugly face again, I'm going to cut off your two ears. You don't even deserve my time, useful child... Amara, take them with Epione."

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **15:20 PM**

When Kara knew she was going to share horse with Lena, she thought it would be more romantic and less... noisy.

" _Simon, I don't care!"_ The CEO shouted at her cellphone. " _They can't refuse to accept our offer! It's a lot more than it's worth! What the hell are those Scots thinking!?"_

Beside her, the bald Royal guard (and her horse) looked at her with infinite pity, gently shaking her head. The other guard, the one of dark skin, was whispering next to Diana with a perplexed expression. The Queen Hippolyta was watching Lena's cellphone with a look of astonishment that would have been comical if Kara had not had her ears so sore. _Damn super hearing._

 _"Simon, do whatever is necessary, you understand?... That Wayne Enterprises what? THEN OFFER MORE THAN HE, DAMN! IF YOU HAVE TO SELL YOUR SOUL, SELL IT, BUT PURCHASE, INGEN!"_

 _It had to be Bruce Wayne... Maybe if Cat talks to Lena about handling anger..._

The royal guard pulled her horse a little closer to them. "Is this normal in the Man's World?"

"Only when her main competitor is involved, Alkyone." Kara shrugged, tightening her grip on Lena's waist.

The horses began to gallop a little faster. Kara remembered that unfortunate experience she'd had with a mechanical bull a few years ago.

"The horses recognize the landscape." Alkyone's scars crumpled when she smiled. "We are reaching the temples of the Lesser Gods."

 _"There's no excuse, Simon! Don't let that man leave National City!"_

"Will it be long until we get the Oracle?"

"It's twenty minutes from the Temple of Aeolus. You'll like it, Menalippe keeps it in good condition."

Lena tensed in Kara's arms. _"I have to go now, Simon. Tomorrow I'll call you again, and I hope you have better news. Do whatever is necessary, but don't let that old man win us."_ Lena hung up and looked at her cellphone screen. "46%. Shit."

"Lena... "

"Sorry, Puppy." Lena kissed her hand, snuggling into her arms. "I don't want to ruin the ride, I just needed to make that call."

Kara rested her head on her shoulder. "Now don't think about work anymore, okay?"

"Okay." Lena kissed her ear, then looked at the Amazon by her side. "Alkyone, you don't happen to...?"

"Grapes?" The Royal guard took a bunch of red grapes from her saddlebag, giving it to Lena. "I never leave my house without them, Princess."

The sun bathed Kara's skin, filling her with energy and delicious heat _. I knew it, I just needed some sun and Lena in my arms._ The landscape of the mountain was beautiful, dark gray and pale yellow rocks, twisted trees that looked like amazing figures, small animals fleeing as they advanced. Kara felt light as if she were flying. _This is going to be a good day, Kara, you've to think positive._

Kara saw the temples in the distance, growing larger as they advanced. The Queen Hippolyta let out a shout of joy and began to gallop quickly, holding happy races with her daughter. Kara got infected with the melody of their laughter.

"Should we follow their example, Potsticker?"

"Don't even think about it, I'm perfectly fine with at this speed, I don't want- _KARA!"_

The blonde gave a gentle blow to the horse, causing the animal to gallop at full speed. Kara grabbed the reins and held on tightly, enjoying Lena's frightened screams. Lena turned and hugged her neck with the strength of a baby koala. _She's so cute._

The temples were in a wide plain space, similar an old stone street. Kara and Lena caught up with Diana in five minutes, Kara having fun with the horse's jumps and enjoying the brunette's soft deadly embrace.

"Wow, it looks like my Potsticker doesn't like racing."

"Kara Zor-El, get me off this monster right now or I promise I'll put Kryptonite on your toothpaste."

"Don't tell me you were scared, it's not like I'm going to let you get hurt." Kara slipped a hand over her buttocks.

"Don't push your luck, Girl of Steel." Lena bit her lip. Kara listened to her heartbeat get faster. "Now help me to get down."

The blonde jumped off the horse, glad to have chosen to wear light clothing. Once on the ground, she and Alkyone helped Lena down. _What a cute horse, I always wanted a pony. Maybe I can convince Lena to take him home._

Kara watched the little temples around her, made of stone and slightly greenish by the passage of time. None of them had the solemnity of the Temple of Athena or the beauty of the Temple of Aphrodite, but Kara found herself captivated by each and every one of them.

Diana, her mother and the other Royal guard approached them. "These are our little temples. That's the Temple of Hebe, within it are flames that never goes out. That's the Temple of Erin, where there is an apple tree with yellow apples."

"Apples of Discord?" Lena frowned.

The Queen laughed. "No, dear. My sister accidentally ate that apple three thousand years ago... Antiope was two months fighting with everyone for the most absurd reasons."

Diana laughed. "My favorite is the Temple of Aeolus, it has a beautiful windmill. Look, Lena, that Temple is..."

Diana took Lena's hand and entered the nearest temple, talking excitedly about its characteristics. _She looks as happy as if she were showing Lena a theme park._ The blonde was about to follow them inside, but accidentally her gaze fell on one of the Temples on her left.

Kara stood still in her place, bewitched by the symbol on that temple. The blonde took off her glasses to make sure her eyes did not deceive her. Above the building was a large symbol of a stone well, from which a woman came out.

 _Aletheia... Veritas_

Kara stopped listening to Diana's voice, hurrying toward the Temple of Aletheia. The sound of her footsteps against the stone floor echoed in the silent street, incredulous, frightened. _It's not possible._

Kara entered the stone temple feeling a sudden cold mingling with her body's heat. The afternoon light entered through a large hole in the ceiling, illuminating the creepers on the walls and the wild vegetation on the floor. The first thing Kara saw was a huge stone well in the middle of the place, which looked as old as the time itself.

The second thing she saw were three statues, just below the hole in the ceiling. They were three women, of beautiful and curious appearance. Kara noticed with amazement that they were in perfect condition. The first woman was tall and slender, with wild curls and a mocking smile on her face; The second woman was very similar to the first, but her curls were tidy and her smile was smaller; The last woman had long straight hair, falling down her shoulders. A few words in Greek were written on the bottom of the statues.

Kara was so hypnotized by them that she paid no attention to the sound of Charis approaching her. The Royal guard cleared her throat at her side.

"This temple was the first of all." Said the dark-skinned guard. "It's a shame no one is interested in fixing it."

Kara blinked a couple of times "Who are they?"

"Those are the Black sisters: Bellatrix, Andromeda and Narcissa. They were the first priestesses of Aletheia." Charis smiled. "There are many stories told about them."

"What does it say there?" Kara pointed to the Greek letters.

The guard shrugged. "It says _'Only our Truth protects the world'_... We should return to the Queen and the Princesses, young Kara. Soon we will be in the Oracle."

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **16:10 PM**

The Oracle was a beautiful square building, painted blue so people could see it from a distance. When they entered, Kara found herself in a room lit by torches. The walls were made of dark carob and the floor was of marble. Lena let out a sigh of astonishment, watching everything around her.

The Kryptonian saw two women on an altar a little further on. One of them was Menalippe, watching a silver cup in her hands. The other was a woman thin like a lobster, with the biggest eyes Kara had ever seen. _Looks like she hasn't combed her hair for centuries._

The blonde Amazon smiled delightedly, approaching her visitors. "I didn't expect to receive visitors so soon, my Queen."

"It was the perfect opportunity to show Lena the mountain, sister." The Queen rubbed Lena's shoulder. "The day is perfect to ride."

 _There is a well in the Temple of Aletheia._ Kara was listening vaguely to the conversation. _Lillian hid the medallion in a well. 'Only our Truth protects the world'. Here's a connection, something I'm not seeing._

"Do you want me to try to see your future, My Queen?" Asked Menalippe.

"I want you to try." Hippolyta smiled. "I know it is not so easy since the Gods keep silent, but anything you could tell me would be fine."

Lena looked at her in disbelief. "Menalippe can see the future?"

"Just a few things, Princess." she replied. "I can also see the past."

"You will understand that it's a little hard to believe."

"Is it the strangest thing you've ever heard in your life?" Menalippe smiled.

Lena's lips tightened slightly. "I suppose not."

"Anyway, you're partly right, Princess. The future is uncertain and it has many faces, I can only see some of those faces."

Kara noticed that the thin woman watched the scene in silence, with a small smile on her face.

Menalippe looked at the Queen, bringing the silver cup closer to her. "I'll do my best attempt, my Queen."

Hippolyta took a small dagger out her belt, proceeding to cut her thumb slightly. Kara watched hypnotized as the drop of blood fell into the cup.

The seer drew it close to her face, watching intently. "Now I see what you did in the morning... You ate fish and bread with your Royal guards."

"Exactly."

"Mmm... Your future has many faces, my Queen. They are all beautiful, but I can only see a little of each one. I see you and Lena taking a walk in the rose garden. I see you combing the black hair of a short woman named Maggie... You'll also be the one to teach your granddaughter's lover how to use a sword."

"Do you see any... Empress?"

Lena's face turned white, and Diana's eyes widened in horror.

"I see you talking to one, but I don't know about what."

"I thank you immensely, Menalippe."

The seer smiled and looked at Diana. "What about you, Princess Diana? Do you want me to try to see something for you?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "I guess I won't lose anything by trying."

Menalippe took the small knife and cut the index finger of the older brunette. Kara saw the drop of blood fall into the cup.

"I see you eating cereal this morning... I see you an hour ago, with Lena in the Temple of Aeolus, and now I'm seeing your future... Oh, Diana, this is beautiful! You'll be very happy. I see you playing with Lena and the foreigners, having fun in the sunlight. I see that soon you will renew your marriage vows, and that it will be a party...

Kara could not stop looking at the other woman. The woman took up her broom and opened a door on her right, going out to what appeared to be a garden.

"What about you, Princess Lena? Do you want me to try to see your future?"

"...Well, I think not for now..."

Kara took advantage of the fact that no one seemed to be looking at her and moved towards the door, going out to a small back garden. A pile of old wood was rotting in a corner; there was an old, empty altar, where there was no any god. The mountain landscape could be seen in the distance, but Kara ignored it and paid attention to the woman. She was cleaning her broom, standing two feet away from her, without having seen her approach.

"Hey... "

"Oh!" The woman got scared, turning to see Kara. "Merlin's beard, you frightened me."

"I'm so sorry!" Kara held up her hands. "I didn't want to scare you, I just wanted to say hello."

"To me?" The woman blinked a couple of times. "Why you want to say hello to me? I'm not a seer, I'm just an apprentice and I've never been able to see anything."

"I'm sure someday you'll improve." Kara held out her hand. "I'm Kara Danvers."

The woman shook her hand, smiling nervously. "Sybill Trelawney. I've been here for a hundred years, and you..." Kara was about to respond, but the woman stopped her. "No no, don't tell me... You've been here for... two years."

"Four days, ma'am."

"Oh, I was about to say that!" The big-eyed woman nodded. "People used to say that I was born with the Inner Eye. I came here to improve my abilities, and Menalippe took me as an apprentice... Although all I do is clean the Oracle."

"Don't be discouraged, Ms Trelawney. Mentors have rare ways of teaching us, I'm sure it will all be worth it in the end."

"Yes..." Trelawney smiled. "Yes, you're right. I've been sweeping floors for seventy years, soon Menalippe will really train me. But tell me, Kara Danvers, has the Man's World changed a lot? England is still a world pow-?..."

Her eyes went blank. The woman's head trembled slightly, fading all emotion from her face.

"Sybill? Sybill, what's wrong?"

 _"Don't trust the enemy that has your face, Hope..."_ she said in a voice much thicker than before.

Kara stepped back and stumbled. " _Rao's shit!"_

 _"Don't trust the Truth that protects the world._

 _Don't trust those who have a thousand faces._

 _Protect the gap or destroy her, it's your choice._

 _You have lost a world and now you are going to lose another one._

 _The Warrior renounced everything for love, now she must renounce love for everything._

 _The Hero has lived thousands of lives in one, she will see her world falling apart, her house burning, her family being destroyed. To reach the sky it is necessary to go down to Hell._

 _The Invictus will have her heart trapped in a golden cage, drinking sand and talking to ghosts of a dead world._

 _The Greatest will be the head in the final battle. She will be the leader of the army when the two sisters tussle again. And only one of them will survive this time._

 _The Hope will stop being a girl and will become a woman. She will see her world fall apart again, and will rise higher from the ashes of her home._

 _The Gap will face the Truth, causing the metallic giant to fall. She is surrounded by enemies on all sides. She will be destroyed but never defeated. She will choose to be our salvation or destruction, depending on whether she is willing to sacrifice what she loves the most._

 _She's the only one in her class, and that is why she will bring the Crisis again."_

Kara saw Trelawney return to normal with a gasp. The woman blinked and looked at her in bewilderment.

"Damn, it's happened to me again. I'm so sorry, sometimes I lose consciousness in the middle of a conversation. I hope I did nothing embarrassing... Miss Danvers, why do you have that face?

* * *

 **The Princess of Tamaran**

 **17:00 PM**

 _Princess Koriand'r of Tamaran squirmed one last time, before being overcome by exhaustion and collapsing on the stretcher._

 _The sound of her gasps bounced off the dark walls and returned to her ears. She could not think of anything but pain, a pain so frightening that it stretched down her legs into her bowels. Koriand'r felt for the last time the tears escaping her eyes. She had grown tired of begging them to stop, or her captors did not understand Tamaranean or simply ignored her._

 _She heard the woman's voice. "Again."_

 ** _*Brrrrrr*_**

 _The electricity rushed through her body, fast, violent, as if innumerable daggers were cutting her body at the same time. Koriand'r squirmed, screaming in Tamaranean for the thousandth time. The room began to revolve around her and the figures of the woman and the man became blurred._

 _And then she just stopped screaming, her body still twitching in small spasms. The light died completely. Koriand'r did not know if she had fallen unconscious or finally X'hal had taken pity on her and let her die._

 _"Is she unconscious?" Asked the woman's voice._

 _"She's unconscious."_

 _"Good... Let's give her a break of twenty minutes and then we'll continue."_

 _"Do you think she'll hold out so much?" Asked the man's voice._

 _"I don't think so, I know it. Our Starfire isn't weaker than the others, and the others were even able to fight a Demon Lord."_

 _"This one doesn't seem capable of facing a Kryptonian."_

 _"She's."_

 _"But can she kill Supergirl?"_

 _"Of course not." The woman grunted. "Very few things in this world can kill a Kryptonian. Our goal isn't to kill Kara Zor-El, but to kill Kara Danvers. "_

 _"Do you say she'll survive?"_

 _"I say she's the one who is less likely to die." The woman sighed. "It doesn't matter if she doesn't die, because she'll be destroyed anyway. Our priority is girl."_

 _"When will you call her by her name?"_

 _"Tomorrow... Is cell three ready? It has to be able to withstand a Martian."_

 _"Yes."_

 _"Also prepare the cell four. We take the Green Martian too."_

 _"But... I thought..."_

 _"What do you think will happen when Supergirl disappears? Someone will have to take her place, and the Martians are almost as strong as the Kryptonians. He'll be useful until the gap is born... Are you sure she's unconscious?"_

 _The electricity hit her again through her body. Koriand'r did not have the strength to control her spasms._

 _The woman sighed. "I hate my job."_

 _"I love it."_

 _"You're a psychopath... Are all the bombs ready?"_

 _"Yes, but what did Marsdin say? I don't want to die in prison accused of terrorist."_

 _"Don't worry about her..." The woman sighed. "Everything is ready for tomorrow. I just wish she had killed her in time like she had to. This could have been avoided."_


	27. Day Five(part One): The taste of goodbye

**I will try to update as much as I can before college starts. If you could leave me a review telling me what you think, you would make me very happy :)**

* * *

 **Lena (Luthor) of Themyscira**

 **1:12 AM**

The night on the mountain had a magical beauty that Lena could only compare with a scene out of a fairy tale. The cold air froze her damp skin, a couple of small stones got into her shoes, and of course she could see the mosquitoes flying around her, but nothing made Lena slow the attacks of her wooden sword.

Her grandmother smiled softly when she blocked with her little shield. Lena dodged an unexpected kick to her right arm.

"Do not forget to use your legs too, dear."

The Queen struggled with millennia of experience, fierce and quick as a Goddess. Lena could only imagine how deadly her grandmother would be in a real fight. She raised her own shield to block a kick. The Queen turned to her left to attack her on her side. Lena lifted the shield, being surprised when her grandmother did not attack, but raised her in her arms like a bag of potatoes.

"Hey, this is cheating! Get me down!"

"If that is what you want..."

Hippolyta released her and Lena fell to the ground with a **_Paf_**. The blow shook her brain, but the CEO forced herself not to show her pain. Her grandmother's violet eyes sparkled with amusement.

"I told you to use your legs."

"I'm a little tired, that's all."

"That is understandable, it is been a long day and this place has a lot of interesting things to see." The Queen leaned next to her. _No Queen of the outside world would dare lie on the grass._

Lena felt her grandmother's hand gently squeeze hers. From where they were, the huge blanket of stars looked more beautiful than ever. She could swear that there were new stars, of hundreds of impossible colors. _I've never seen such a bright sky in my life._

"Our destiny is written in the stars." said the Queen, stroking her thumb. "Can I ask you something?"

"Mm? Of course." Lena said without looking away from the stars.

"Why did you tell Menalippe that you did not want to see your future?"

"Because I don't want to see it." Lena sighed, staring at a blue star. "Whatever the future holds, I want it to be a surprise... I want to make my decisions based on the now."

"Do you want to know what I think, dear?" Hippolyta laughed. "I think the future holds something wonderful for you, numerous moments of happiness and glory." The Queen sighed. "As if your name were written in the stars, revealing the great things that you will achieve."

 _She really believes in me._

"I haven't done anything important yet. I haven't even been training for more than three days."

"You will have time to do it, dear... Of course, you would have more time if you stayed a little longer."

 _Nothing I'd like more than to stay here a little more._ "I'm sorry, my company can't be without me for too long... But I'll be back soon." _As soon as I can_. "I'll continue training at home, with my Mother and Mom. I'll be much stronger when I come back."

"Obviously you care about your company, dear."

"For a long time it was just L-Corp and me." Lena smiled. _My company is like my son_. "L-Corp is... mine. It's what I know how to do, what I do well. It's my way of improving the world."

"I understand." said the blond woman. Lena did not know if she really understood her, but she hoped she would. "You are incredibly young, Lena. Just do not forget that your home awaits for you when you want to return."

"I'll come back, I promise." _I'll get stronger, and you'll be proud. I'll earn the respect of the other Amazons no matter how long it takes._ "Maybe you could... come visit me too."

"…Would you like that?"

 _I'd love that_. "That would be nice."

"...I have not been away from the island in six hundred years, dear... But I would go out for you, if that is what you want." Her grandmother turned, kissing her cheek softly. "Oh, and one more thing."

"What?"

"An Amazon is not an Amazon because of her muscle strength, but because of her courage in battle." Lena felt a long fingernail stroking her hair. "And you are a very brave woman, Lena. Never forget that."

Lena felt something opening inside her heart, something she had longed for since when she was seven and tried to get Lionel to love her even a little. "Thanks, Grandmother."

Hippolyta rose from the floor, shaking the dust off her clothes. "Do not stay up too long, we will depart early."

"I know, I just want to look at the sky a little more."

"Sleep well, dear."

"See you tomorrow, Grandma."

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **1:29 AM**

Kara was sitting on the straw bed, her glasses in her hands, watching them as if they had all the answers in the universe. She wondered if shredding them would make her feel better. Because the Kryptonian felt confused... and deadly frightened.

 _I'm going crazy._

Kara heard the door of the small room creak behind her. The Oracle had only been able to offer them a modest and old room, but the last thing that concerned her at the time was comfort.

"Still awake, Puppy?" Lena closed the door. "You should get some sleep, Amazons like to travel early."

Kara heard Lena leave the wooden sword on the floor, and then start undressing.

"On the way here I found Menalippe. She offered to see my future again." Kara heard the dirty shirt falling to the floor. "Do you think I'm doing the right thing? I mean, bad things always happen to those who consult fortune tellers in movies... like Cersei Lannister. But if my Mother and Hippolyta have obtained good results, then, by logic..."

 _Be brave, Kara._

"I mean, what's the worst that she could see? Rain on our wedding day?"

"Lena."

The brunette turned to see her. Kara could hear her heartbeat speed up a little. "Kara?"

"Do you love me, Lena?" Kara turned to look at her.

Her girlfriend was standing there, wearing only her black bra... and the silver medallion on her chest. Lena laughed. "Of course I love you, Puppy. Why this question?"

"What would you be willing to do for me?"

Lena frowned. "What's going on, Kara?"

"What would you be willing..." The Kryptonian stood, leaving her glasses on the bed. "...to do for me?"

Lena's lips parted, looking at her with concern. "…Anything."

"Is that true?"

"You know it is."

"If I asked you to do something now..."

"I would do it without thinking twice."

"Then do something for me." Kara studied her body language. It was the same as always: self-assured, slightly tense.

"Kara, you're worrying me. What's wrong?"

"Lena Luthor, if you love me, I need you to do something for me without asking me questions."

"My God, Kara, what?"

"Take off that medallion." Kara held out her hand. "Give it to me."

Lena looked at her hand as if it were an object from another world. "Kara..."

"Lena. Luthor. of Themyscira. Take off that medallion and give it to me _right. now."_

For two eternal seconds, Lena looked at her with a huge confusion in her green eyes. Then she closed her eyes, sighing tiredly.

When she opened her eyes again, they were red.

 ** _"I can not let you do that, Kara Zor-El."_**

Kara jumped up and pressed the neck of that thing against the wooden wall. Those red eyes did not even blink.

"I don't know who you are..." Kara lifted her a few inches off the floor. "But I give you two seconds to get out of my girlfriend before I force you out."

 ** _"I can not do that."_**

Kara slammed her fist into the wall next to her head. " _Get out. of Lena. now."_

 ** _"I understand that you are afraid, but it would be better if you understood that I do not want to hurt you or her."_** The thing did not even blink. **_"On the contrary, what I want to do is protect her, like you. Without me, she would inevitably die."_**

"Who are you?"

 ** _"I have been called a thousand ways: God, Lucifer, Lena... my real name is not in your language. But as a gesture of goodwill, I will tell you: my real name is Dax Novu."_**

"Give me a reason why I shouldn't fry your head, Dax Novu."

 ** _"You would only hurt the Gap, because I am not inside her. I am just using her to talk to you. And I ask you to lower your voice, someone could hear you. The only advantage you have against your enemies is that they do not know I am using one of their medallions."_**

"Gap? Enemies? Medallions? Enough." Kara shivered in anger. "I don't care if you're Rao Himself, you'd better leave my girlfriend alone or I..."

Kara felt an invisible hand tighten her neck with the strength of a Titan. She released the thing and put her hands around her neck, looking for an arm that was not there.

 ** _"I am not going to hurt you, lass, but I can not let you take me away from the only Gap that has survived. Maybe some other time you are willing to listen."_** Kara felt sleepy, very sleepy, as if she had not slept in a week. **_"I just hope my Gap understands it... Now go to sleep, you will feel much better when you wake up_**."

* * *

 **Diana of Themiscyra**

 **7:03 AM**

Diana took a deep breath, trying to choose a reason why she should return to her room and prepare for the return trip instead of standing in front of Lena's door. She did not want to do this without Artemis, and yet, she knew it would probably be easier to do it now, before losing her courage and postponing it to another time. _It's now, it has to be now._

Diana knocked softly on the door. Immediately she heard the noise of someone moving inside the room, hurried steps to where she was. A very disheveled Kara without glasses opened.

"Good morning, dear."

"Morning, Diana." Kara yawned. "Is it time to go back?"

"In half an hour we'll be on our way, when the sun starts to warm up. I was hoping I could talk a bit with both of you before we came back."

Her blue eyes narrowed with confusion. "Um, yeah, of course. Lena is still sleeping, I'll wake her up."

"Let me do it, please."

Diana quietly entered the modest bedroom, narrowing her eyes at the dim light. Lena was sleeping on the bed, just in a bra and hugging a pillow. Diana could not help the feeling that she was back thirty years ago, about to wake up her daughter to change her diapers and give her a bath. If she closed her eyes, she could still pretend that Lena was two years old, and not thirty-two. That she was still her baby. _My Sun and Stars, the most perfect creature that has ever trod this earth._

Diana stroked her cheek gently, rubbing it with her thumb. "Wake up, my Sun and Stars."

"Mmm... "

She bent to kiss her forehead. "Lena, sweetie, you must wake up now."

She opened her lemon-green eyes, lighting the entire room for a second.

"Mother?"

"Hi, baby."

Lena grunted and sat down on the bed, smiling sleepily. Kara gave her a clean shirt and sat down beside her.

"Good morning, Mother... Is there a place where I can take a bath? I feel a bit sticky."

"Sure, there's a tub in the basement."

"When will we get going?"

"In half an hour, there's plenty of time. But before that, I was hoping to... talk to you two."

Lena frowned. "Is something wrong?" She put her arm around Kara.

"No sweetie, nothing's wrong." Diana smiled. "But there's something I have to tell you. This actually includes you four... But mainly you."

The familiar car saleswoman smile returned. "What is it?"

 _Alright, here I go_. "Well, sweetie, I've thought of many ways we could have this conversation... and I think I'd better say it before we go back, so you and Kara have more time to think about it." Diana sighed. "Lena... you know that life has a cycle, that people are born... they grow up... they live their life... And then they die... That cycle has always existed and will always exist... and that there will always be exceptions, like your mom, your grandmother and me. " Diana felt the irrepressible desire to bite her lip. "I would like to know what you think about... becoming an exception too."

Her lips parted and her eyes widened. "Do you want me to be immortal?"

"I want you to see it as a possibility, an opportunity to do things you can only imagine." _Show yourself secure, Diana, relax._ "And of course, the proposition goes for Kara too. I wouldn't want you to go away from the woman you love."

As she expected, the Kryptonian stammered. "Alex..."

"And for Alex and Maggie too, if that's what they want."

"All of us?" Lena stared at her in astonishment.

 _Yes, and all the people that would be necessary to convince you._ "Of course."

Neither of them said anything for a few seconds.

"Um, I know this is a surprise, but it could be a very good thing if you think about it a little." _Slowly, Diana, Slowly._ "You would have all the time in the world to do whatever you want."

Kara stammered. "B-But the Amazons live isolated."

"Artemis and I don't. And neither would you." Diana assured her quickly. "Lena, you don't have to give up absolutely anything... You would have all the time in the world to do everything you want: train, run L-Corp, save African children, whatever you want. The same for you, Kara, you'd have enough time to be... the best journalist in the world, if that's what you want. And I haven't yet spoken to Alex and Maggie, but..."

"Mother." Lena looked at her as if seeing her for the first time, sighing deeply. "And what happens... What happens if the answer is no?"

 _Merciful Hera please give me strength._

"If the answer is no, then... Then I would have to accept it." _But for Hera's sake Lena don't say no._

"If I say no, then you would see me die."

"But neither do I want to force you to decide on something you don't want." Diana stroked her cheek. "Lena... I love you more than anything in this world. I would give anything to be with you forever, but your decisions must be yours and yours alone." She saw her green eyes dampen. "No, sweetie, don't cry... Think about it, talk with Kara, that's all I want. Take all the time you need... No matter how much it is." _It doesn't matter if you look a couple of years older than me._

"I-I..." For the first time, Diana saw her stutter. Lena looked at her girlfriend. "I'll think about it."

Kara took her hand and looked at her gently. "We'll think about it."

Diana sighed in relief. _The most difficult thing has already happened. Now I have to convince them... Everything will be fine, Diana._ "That's all I wanted... Now I'm going to prepare you a bath, Lena. I love you, but you smell terrible this morning."

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **9:17 AM**

Alex was not sure how she felt when she woke up on the floor of her bedroom. No doubt the rage was there, mixed with hatred and humiliation. Such humiliation as she had never felt in her life. But beneath all that, Alex felt sad, so sad that she only wanted to bury her head under her pillow and cry for hours. _Which I won't be able to do until all this madness is finished._

 _The traitor knows._ Whether it was Azula ( _I'll kill that bitch with my own hands_ ), or Xena and Gabrielle **_(*ZAS* *ZAS* *ZAS*)_** or the damn-a-thousand-times Akila ( _or those four shits together_ ), the traitor had laughed at them in their own faces. _Or what is left of mine_.

Every muscle in her body screamed in pain as she rose from the floor. Alex watched the disaster around her: clothes on the floor, luggage messed up, the bed totally neat as a ridiculous contradiction. Everything seemed painfully disastrous. _But I don't lack anything, neither the notes of the case, nor the cell phones, nor anything that could be a clue about what we were doing._

 _How. the fuck. did they know?_

Alex bit her lip, cursing loudly as her tooth touched her wound. _I won't be able to hide it from Kara. Shit, shit, shit, shiiiiiit._

She heard the door open, and turned. As usual, Io had entered without knocking, but instead of smiling, the little Amazon had a serious countenance that seemed almost obscene on her. In her hands, she was carrying a silver tray with some things: two small bottles, one yellow and the other white; a plate with a _chocolate cake(?_ ); and the most curious rose Alex had ever seen, blue, bright as a sapphire and with a perfume so strong that Alex could smell it from a distance.

"Good morning, Lady Alex," said the girl softly. "I hope you're feeling better this morning." Io ignored the mess in the room and smiled a little.

Alex sighed and sat on the bed. "Things don't get better going to sleep, Io."

"I know." The girl set the tray on the bed, sitting down beside her. "It may not look like it... but I am two thousand five hundred years old. I know things don't get better with going to sleep." Io took the blue rose and laid it gently on Alex's legs. "This is for you... and the chocolate cake too, I stole it from the kitchen."

 _I'm not hungry_. However, Alex began to eat, regardless of whether the chocolate tasted of cardboard. "I hope that toad-faced cook didn't bake this cake... Where's Maggie?"

"She still doesn't want to talk to anyone, she said she needs to be alone."

Alex felt the sudden urge to vomit. ( _Maggie advancing towards the bonfire...)_

"Artemis?"

"She refuses to be seen with the marks on her back." Io rubbed her hands. "Epione had to give her a painkiller during the night. These bottles here have your painkillers, you must drink the white one at night, and the yellow one is..."

( _'I take them. Don't hurt her.'_ )

Alex felt her hand begin to tremble and her eyes filled with tears.

"Lady Alex..." Io tried to take her hand. "I know it's hard…"

"You know nothing."

"I know better than anyone what it's like to hate the Banas, when they take from you something you love. Just…"

"Go away."

"Lady Alex..."

"I said go away, Io. Go away and leave me alone."

 _You don't understand, it's all my fault._ The little Amazon got up and left. Alex waited until she disappeared to let her tears escape her eyes.

* * *

 **Kara Danvers**

 **1:38 PM**

Kara had sat on the front of the horse this time. Unlike the previous day, the sun cooled her instead of heating her. The only thing she was aware of was Lena's arms around her waist and her chin on her shoulder.

The city began to grow larger in the distance.

"We're almost there." Lena rubbed her nose on her shoulder. "You were very quiet during the trip."

"I guess I keep thinking about what Diana said." Kara sighed and took her hand. "Not every day someone offers you to live forever."

Lena laughed without humor. "You would be the first immortal and bulletproof lesbian... Maggie wouldn't think twice."

"And you?" Kara sighed. "What do you think?"

"That our lives will never cease to become more and more strange."

Kara turned her head a little and kissed her cheek. "I don't know, Lena. It's like it's too good to be true. There are many things we have to keep in mind."

"Would you be able, Kara?" Lena sighed. "Being with me for a lifetime is one thing, but being with me forever? Do you think you're going to love me for so long?"

Kara smiled. "I request permission to be cheesy."

"Permission granted."

"I'll love you for as long as I live, Lena."

Kara heard her heart beat faster, and felt her arms tighten her grip. "I suspect I will too, Kara."

The horses entered the city, accelerating their gallop. Kara saw Alkyone laughing with joy, greeting her sisters around her. All the Amazons smiled at her, extending their hands and shouting greetings. _No wonder she's so popular._

"We'll talk about this later."

"Of course." Kara tightened their horse's reins. "I have to talk to Alex, too."

The horses took the road directly to the Palace, as their riders had taught them to do. Kara looked on with a smile on her lips as Diana played with some butterflies that had been trapped in her black hair. Her gaze met the Queen's violet eyes, who winked at her. Turning into a street, she could see the Palace at the end, with a woman sitting on the steps whom she immediately recognized as Alex. _I have to tell her about the Temple of Veritas._

The horses stopped, and Kara jumped down, hoping Alkyone would help Lena get off the horse. The Kryptonian fixed her T-shirt and walked to her sister.

"Hey, Alex! You're not going to believe what I saw up there. I think..."

Alex looked at her and Kara saw her face.

The words died in the blonde's mouth, as if an invisible force had torn them away. Alex had a broken lip, a black eye and a green bruise on her jaw. But the most painful wound was in her dark eyes, opaque as a black hole in the Phantom Zone. Kara took off her glasses, scanning her body.

"Kara..."

Alex had a broken jaw bone and the muscles in her back were injured. Kara felt the anger grow inside her, finally about to explode. "What happened?" _Who did this?_

"I'm sorry, Kara, I should have told you..."

Kara heard Diana step off her horse and let out a gasp.

 _"What. happened?"_

"We were looking for the traitor." Her sister swallowed. "And they discovered us."

Kara heard the Queen approach. "Merciful Hera, what happened to you?"

"Alex? Kara?" Lena approached.

Kara felt a violent rage shake her body from the depths of her bowels. Her vision clouded and her body began to tremble.

"Kara..."

"Diana, what is going on? What is this about a traitor?"

Their voices seemed as far away as whispers from the Phantom Zone.

 _"No one..."_ Her hand became a fist. _"...touches..."_ The hairs on the back of her neck bristled _"... **my sister."**_

Kara threw her glasses to the floor, jumping immediately in the air above the heads of the people present. She heard Lena's voice ( _Kara!_ ) and the queen losing her breath ( _That girl is flying!?_ ) but none of that made her stop. _Nothing could._

Kara Zor-El flew into the jungle, switching on all her senses at once. She ignored the sound of the waterfalls, the noise of the animals fleeing, the whispers of the trees and concentrated only on seeking human voices. The Banas were a kilometer to the west, dismantling their tents. _They're going to pay_. Kara ripped a tree from its roots and flew at the camp. The crunching of the tree sounded like music to her ears.

Upon arriving at the camp, the eyes of all the Banas opened with surprise. Kara could hear the whole of their voices _(*What is that!?* *Isis!* *But what...?*)._

And then she threw the tree at the nearest ones.

Three women received the impact of the tree and a fourth managed to dodge it. A brunette sounded the alarm as Kara landed on the ground, cracking it. Dozens of arrows flew at her, stinging her like mosquito bites.

"The arrows don't hurt her!"

"Attack!"

Kara walked indifferently toward the main tent, pushing away any Amazon who got in her way. The attack of their knives and swords was totally useless, all was shredded with her own hands.

 _"AKILA! Get out there and show your face, YOU COWARD!"_ Kara threw two Banas through the air, listening to the sound of a pair of bones breaking. Inside the Shim'Tar's tent, a heartbeat accelerated with terror. Kara shattered another sword with her hands and threw her carrier away. _"You don't want to come out, huh? You're not that brave now, are you!? Then I'll force you out!"_

Blind in anger, Kara used her heat vision in the tent. _This will get her out._

The flames spread immediately like a spark in dry grass.

"NO!" A blond Bana shouted at her side. "Put out the fire! PUT IT OUT! THE SHIM'TAR ISN'T THERE!"

 _What?_

Kara used her x-ray vision.

 _NO!_

The Kryptonian used her freeze breath on the tent immediately, trying to extinguish the fire she had caused. The blonde Bana ran inside the tent, pulling out the frightened little girl with thick brown hair. The girl did not stop trembling.

"By Rao! Are you okay!? Are you hurt!? I'm sorry!"

"STAY AWAY!" The blond Bana pulled the child away from her, holding a sword in her hands.

The little girl began to cry.

Kara felt like someone had thrown a bucket of water over her. Looking around, she saw at least twenty Banas on the ground, some injured and some unconscious. _And I did this._ Kara ignored the blonde and tried to talk to the child.

"I-I'm so sorry, I thought..."

"P-Please, go away, don't hurt Gabrielle..."

The blond Bana growled. "Stop crying, Hermione. I won't let her hurt you."

It was at that moment that Akila actually appeared, running towards the camp with Amara and a little red-haired girl. The girl let out a gasp when she saw them. "Hermione!"

"Shut up, Ginny, don't move."

"But... "

"I said don't move."

 _Don't talk like that... I-I'm not the monster here... Y-You are... You hurt Alex..._

Akila advanced slowly, hands raised. "Who are you? Why are you doing this?"

"You... You hurt my sister."

"Are you Maggie of Sawyer's sister? She's sent you?"

 _She doesn't recognize me without my glasses._

"You hurt them..."

Akila sighed. "I suppose I deserve it because I was merciful... I'm the Shim'Tar, no one else is responsible for what happened yesterday. Let Hermione go, she is harmless as a rabbit."

"I'm not trying to attack her!"

"Do you want revenge then? I offer you a duel with me. If you win, your revenge will be honorable. Otherwise, it will be a massacre."

"I do not think so, Akila." Queen Hippolyta and company appeared, walking so loudly that Kara was surprised she had not heard them before.

Innumerable Themyscirians began to appear, armed with weapons so large that they seemed made for giants. Kara saw with horror how the Banas who still stood resisted in vain. _What have I done?_

"What is this, Hippolyta!?"

"You all are under arrest, Akila." The Queen growled angrily. "You would better give yourself up without fight, if you do not want wounded."

"And under what charges do you think to arrest us all? We have broken no law, neither in your laws nor in ours!"

"Do not talk about laws, my sister and I wrote them together. Antiope would be disappointed by her people."

"She did well to leave."

"Guards, catch them all."

Kara watched in horror as the blind Philomela flung herself against Amara and the red-haired child. The blonde Myrto pointed an arrow at the girl she had almost burned in the tent, forcing the blond Bana to lower her sword. Charis and Alkyone fell on Akila like two panthers, yet it took almost three minutes to subdue her.

"Bring me the Shim'Tar."

Alkyone and Charis brought Akila to Hippolyta. The Bana looked at her defiantly.

 ** _Bam!_** Hippolyta slapped her. "That is for what you did to my granddaughter."

"We haven't even been around Lena."

"I was not talking about her." The Queen lifted her chin. "I will send a message to Bana-Mighdall explaining your situation, I hope Karna will respond for your actions."

"We haven't broken any law."

"Of course not... But from what I understand, you are all suspected of treason, and you will be questioned." Hippolyta took her chin. "And if you mention my sister again... Karna will have to replace her Shim'Tar." She released her. "Put them all in prison, Alkyone."

* * *

 **Lena (Luthor) of Themyscira**

 **1:52 PM**

Lena and Alex watched in amazement as they took the Banas away, Hippolyta looking at them in disgust, Kara standing in the middle of the camp as if she were the loneliest person in the world. The brunette was going to approach her girlfriend, but Kara bit her lip and jumped into the air.

"Kara!"

Alex took her arm. "Leave her, she needs to be alone."

"Have you gone crazy, Alex?!" Lena pulled her hand away. "Why didn't you tell us that you were spying on the Banas!? Kara and her super hearing would have been helpful! I could have helped you! What were you thinking!?"

Her sister's girlfriend grimaced with sadness. "I know it's my fault..."

"I'm sorry, Alex." Lena interrupted. "I don't have time for this. I have to go get Kara."

"Someone needs you more right now."

Lena turned. "What do you mean?"

"Artemis... was injured because of me." Alex seemed about to burst into tears. "They were going to give me lashes on my back... and she took them for me. I'm sorry, Lena, I..."

"Where is she?"

"She hasn't left her room since yesterday."

Lena bit her lip hard. "Those bitches attacked my mom with a whip because of you?"

"I'm sorry."

And it was then when she made her first mistake, which she would regret long afterwards. But at that moment, she was clouded with anger.

"It seems that you're not so perfect after all."

Lena regretted as soon as she heard herself say that, when she saw the pain on her friend's face. But that did not stop her from running back to the Palace, her heart beating madly in her chest.

* * *

 **Artemis of Bana-Mighdall**

 **2:10 PM**

In fact, Artemis had left her bedroom during the day. The redhead had breathed deeply, had let loose her hair, had put on a white T-shirt that covered the wounds on her back and had come out into the hall to enter another room.

More specifically, Lena's old room.

The green-eyed woman smiled as she entered the place that had become her sanctuary. Neither Diana nor she had been able to get rid of a single thing after Lena had vanished. Her white crib was still in place, her toys were still on the shelves, her first coloring books were still on a chair. The Amazon always went there when she needed to think.

She walked over to Lena's old crib and stroked the white wood, touching every little crack her daughter had made with her little hands so long ago. For the first time, Artemis felt like a woman her real age, an old woman trapped in a young body.

 _Sometimes I'm sick of having to be strong all the time._

Diana had spent every day in this room after the first few months of losing Lena. Artemis remembered her face perfectly: her empty gaze, her clenched teeth, her permanent appearance of absence. Her own pain, a pain so huge that she had sometimes wanted to bury a dagger in her chest just to feel better. Hippolyta's eyes shining with concern for her daughter, and accusation at her, as if losing Lena would have been her fault. Themiscyrians' total and permanent contempt.

When everything was too much, she would come to Lena's room. Diana always came there to cry, Artemis came to remember with a smile the baby they had lost.

She stood in that position for hours, remembering Lena's first words ( _'No calots_!'), her tiny finger pointing towards the moon ( _'mun mun!'_ ), her happy dance around her broken sandals _(I Sadals Godys! Sadals Godys!)._

 _I never cried over her death._ Artemis bit her lip. _I screamed in anger, I laughed like a hysteric, cursed the Gods, destroyed, broke and burned things. But I never cried. I let Diana shed enough tears for the two of us._

Artemis heard hurried footsteps in the hallway, and she saw Lena appear in the the doorway. Her face froze in shock as she took in the room she was in. "This place..."

"Your room." Artemis did not move from the floor. "I come here when I want to be alone."

"Mom, what happened?" Lena came into the room. "I just arrive and everyone says..."

"Things got a little wild." Artemis touched the white wood again. "Your friends are fine."

"It's not my friends I'm worried about." Lena said firmly. "Let me see your back."

"No."

"Mo-..."

"And what do you want to see, Lena?... I'm sorry, Princess, but I won't let you see it. What will that change?" _I won't let you pity me._

Lena bit her lip. "You have nothing to be ashamed of, you prevented them from hurting Alex. You did what you thought was right to help someone, that's very brave."

 _No, it's not. I couldn't let it happen again._

"Lena..." Artemis swallowed. "I don't think I've ever told you about my father."

Her daughter narrowed her eyes.

"My father was a quiet and calm man, who didn't speak a word of banen. He was an explorer until my mother captured him and made him her slave... The other men always kept away from the children they spawned, but he didn't. He was always looking for a way to get close to me." Artemis smiled. "He used to... hug me."

"And what happened?"

"I proved to have talent with arms at an early age, which caused the elders to believe that my father's seed was the strongest in the city. Many women... borrowed him from my mother... All the redheads of Bana-Mighdall are my half-brothers. But when I was eleven, my mother decided that she wanted to have another daughter, and she became pregnant with Alexa.

But Alexa was different from the moment she was born." Artemis rubbed her hands."My sister spent a lot of time sick during her first three years. There were nights when we thought she wouldn't survive until the morning. This caused my mother a lot of... rage.

She killed my father when Alexa fainted during her first training." Artemis looked at Lena. "Daughter, I still remember what she said before she began to whip him. _'Your seed has been spoiled_ '. I saw it all... my father died bleeding from the wounds of the whip." Artemis took her hand. "I didn't take the lashes for Alex because I was brave, I took them because I was afraid of losing another person the same way."

"Mom." Lena tightened her fingers. "It's what we do before fear that makes us brave. You decided... to help Alex. You were strong and brave... I wish I was that brave."

"What are you saying? You're very brave, I thought you knew."

"And I know, now, but before..." Lena sighed. "There's something I haven't told you."

Artemis raised her eyebrows. "Lena?"

"You and my Mother will have noticed that I never drink alcohol at meals or at any other time."

"Yes, I've noticed. It's kind of weird, but I guess not everyone likes the taste."

"It's not the taste." Lena stared at her. "I used to be... alcoholic before I met Kara."

It started when I was thirteen and was sent to boarding school in Ireland." she saw Lena bite her lip. "But I had been drunk before, both Lex and me. But at the boarding school? There was no Lionel, no Lillian, no one to hide from. I hid the bottles behind a loose tile on the wall. I drank a glass of cider every night, two before an exam.

No one ever suspected anything." Lena bit her lip. "The perfect Luthor girl sneakily drinking? It was a secret, like my collection of minerals or my Lord of the Rings action figures. With those things it was easy... to forget." Artemis saw with horror that her green eyes were wet. "It was easy to study and concentrate on my grades, because I had no one to occupy my time with."

"No friends?"

"Bum mates during some parties, fleeting sexual partners, but no friends. My... My first friend was Kara.

Sometimes Lex visited me in Ireland." A couple of tears fell. "My brother knew everything about me: how nerdy, insecure and alone I was. He also knew that Lillian and Lionel didn't love me, you didn't need to be a genius to notice.

But Lex? He was my accomplice, my only friend in the world, my whole family... A-And when he tried to kill me..." her daughter sobbed. "When my brother tried to kill me my life became a disaster, because I was never able to understand what had gone wrong. Why my brother, the only one who had really loved me, had decided I was a hindrance in his life. And I started to drink more..." she sobbed again. "And more..." her hand shook." And m-more... always in secret."

Artemis bit her lip, feeling the melancholy grow in her chest like a garbage ball. _I swear that someday I'm going to nail an arrow in Lillian's neck._

"T-That's why I'm not brave." Lena wiped her tears away. "If I were brave, I wouldn't have tried to drown myself in alcohol to forget I was alone. If I were brave, I would have run away from Lillian as soon as I reached majority. If I were brave, I wouldn't be so afraid that the people I love will replace me with someone better."

Artemis saw Diana standing at the door, her red eyes and her serious face. "Lena."

Lena turned to look at her. "Mother?"

"Lena of Themiscyra, don't ever say you're not brave again." Diana came in. "You're an Amazon, an excellent CEO, a wonderful girlfriend and the best daughter in the world." Diana sat on the floor next to her. "I don't care if you used alcohol to forget your sorrows... After the horrible life that Lillian gave you... Hera, that's understandable... I'm not saying that drinking is fine, but I understand why you did it. The important thing is that you accepted Kara's help and love and you managed to overcome that."

Lena wept louder. "Deep down, I drank for you too. W-Well, n-not for you, I thought... L-Lillian always made me believe that my parents had abandoned me, that surely I had been an accident, something t-they had to get rid of to continue with their lives..."

Artemis took her wet face. "You are our life." she saw her wife break the distance and hug Lena. "Our Princess."

They both embraced the young brunette, stroking her hair and whispering soothing words. Her gaze met Diana's, a lethal mixture of sadness and hysteria.

 _No one will ever hurt our daughter again._

 _No one will ever take her away from us again._

 _We're together. We will be happy from now on._

* * *

 **Winn Schott**

 **The last time he was himself**

 _Why is it taking so long for the food to arrive?_ Winn yawned, stretching his arms over M'gann's couch. His stomach felt so empty, it seemed about to digest itself. _I'm not going to tip the delivery guy._

The technician placed his tablet on the table, looking at the Martian at his side. As usual, M'gann had not been able to wait for lunch and instead was nibbling at the leather of an old shoe, staring at her cell phone.

"M'gann, you're going to leave J'onn without shoes _." A normal friend, that was all I wanted._

"I can't help it." M'gann ate a lace like if it was a string of spaghetti. "I have cravings. The leather's taste reminds me of a typical Martian food."

"What about the taste of J'onn's socks?"

"The more quiet you are, the prettier you are, Schott." M'gann kept looking at her cell phone.

"What are you doing? "

"I'm reading yaoi." M'gann smiled. "Batman and Superman... Mmmmm."

"Oh my God, M'gann, are you reading gay porn!? With me next to you!?"

"It's what we straight girls read, I don't blame you for not knowing."

 ** _*Knock Knock Knock*_**

"It must be J'onn." said Winn.

M'gann shook her head. "He has his own key. It must be the food. Do me a favor and open the door."

Winn got up from the couch and went to open the door. _I'm the slave of a pregnant Martian._ When he opened, his eyes widened in surprise and disgust as he recognized the pesky pizza delivery man, with his disheveled blond hair and blue mousey eyes. The man saw him and smiled again, looking at him in that lascivious way that Winn detested. _Of all the pizza shops in the city, M'gann had to choose the one with this guy._

"It seems that fate insists that we continue meeting, pretty boy."

Winn made an effort not to wince. "How much for the pizza?"

"Wow! What is the hurry? We can talk for a while..."

"I don't think so." Winn took the pizza from his hands and went back inside.

M'gann looked at him with surprised eyes. "What is that?"

"The pizza you ordered." Winn grunted. "Give me the money so I can get rid of that guy."

"I ordered Chinese, Winn."

 _"Ha ha ha ha..."_

The technician frowned, blinking a couple of times. When he turned toward the door, the blond guy was smiling with his arms folded, staring at them. "As a last meal, I would have ordered a burger."

M'gann rose suddenly from the couch, but before she could attack, the man lifted one of his hands toward her. The Martian stood perfectly still in the air. Winn had not been able to react when he felt trapped by an invisible force, a giant hand that squeezed his body as if he were a doll. _What's going on? What's going on?!_

The man kept his hands up in the air, smiling like a child. "Well, the Green Martian was more difficult. He doesn't usually lower his guard very often, but it's nothing that a little venom in some chocolate cookies can't fix."

M'gann tried to speak. "J'oo..."

"I wouldn't hold the hope to see him again soon, Pumpkin."

"You're an... alien."

"Alien? No, I'm just a humble human with telekinesis." The man hit them against the wall. "The world is a great place, Miss Martian. Not all interesting people have to be aliens."

"Super-girl-is going to..."

"Tomorrow morning Supergirl will no longer exist. She will go _*pum!*,_ like in a magic trick."

Winn discovered that it was very difficult to open his mouth. "Who are... you?"

The man bit his lip. "You can call me Daddy, if you want, pretty boy... I hope you've had a very good life so far, because it's over, babies! The Crisis has come to your house, guys! Now make yourselves comfortable, because we have a long journey ahead and I still have a lot to do."


	28. Day Five (part two): Treason

**Recommendation: reread Chapter 10, The Warrior's Story. No, it has not been modified, but if you are attentive, re-read it.  
Recommendation 2: Before or during this chapter, listen to 'The Light of the Seven' (Game of Thrones' Soundtrack). You won't regret.**

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **2:15 PM**

The bright sun warmed Maggie's skin, the sand had stuck to her bare feet, the wind imitated the sound of screams in her ears, and the smell of salty water made her feel slightly dizzy. After walking for hours, spending time in the library and in the rose garden, the detective was finally finished on the beach.

To her surprise, the night before she had slept like a baby, totally exhausted both physically and mentally. Her mind could run on autopilot, like any good detective. And yet, Maggie began to believe that the problem had been caused because the whole time she had thought as a detective and not as a person.

 _'When you treat people like savages, they become savages, Maggie of Sawyer'_

 _Was it all to scare me or did she change her mind at the last moment? I don't know what to believe anymore._

Maggie heard footsteps approach behind her. Turning, she saw Io coming toward her, a straw hat on her head and a blue rose in her hands. Her face was decorated with a placid smile as she sat down beside her.

"Hi, Lady Maggie." Io smiled. "I was looking for you."

 _I said I needed to be alone_. "Hey Io, what do you have there?"

"It's for you." Io gave her the blue rose. "We used to give our friends blue roses when they left. Although maybe you could stay a couple more days... It wouldn't be a bother."

 _I won't stay here for a second longer than necessary_. "I'm sorry, Io, but my work is waiting for me at home, I'll have to come back another time."

"Oh." The little Amazon shrugged. "Well... You're going to come back, aren't you? Even if it's a few times?"

"Sure." Maggie tried to smile. "I'll be back so soon you won't notice my absence."

"I'll miss you anyway." Io took the blue rose and put it inside Maggie's jacket. "Lady Maggie, can I hug you?"

 _It seems that asking permission before touching you is something that all the Amazons do_. "Of course, come here."

Io put her arms around her neck and Maggie wrapped her arms around her. The little Amazon rested her cheek on her shoulder, her hot breath tickling Maggie. _I must probably be the first person who has hugged her in years._

"You could also come out to visit me." said Maggie with pity. "I bet you'd love National City."

"Um, no, I'm afraid I can't." Io shrugged. "Only the Queen and the Princesses have ever gone out, the Gods wouldn't want me to leave, but thanks anyway." Io broke the embrace. "By the way, do you know the Banas are all in prison?"

"What?" Maggie blinked a couple of times.

"Queen Hippolyta imprisoned them all, everyone is talking about that." Io said quickly. "Persephone told me that your friend Kara was possessed by the warlike spirit of Ares, and then wings grew on her back, and that she created fire with her hands... Penelope said she spat fire through her mouth."

 _Kara has been exposed. Fuck._

Maggie rose from the sand and put on her shoes, cursing as she felt sand inside her socks. _Fuck._

"Lady Maggie?"

"I remembered that I must do something, Io _." I have to hurry up_. "I'll see you later, now I have to go."

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **2:20 PM**

Kara pulled her head out of the water, taking a breath so deep that the oxygen reached her bones. The dim light of the underground cave glowed like the red sun of Krypton, lighting up to the last corner of the cavern. _But only to my eyes, of course, my super eyes with which I almost burned a child alive._

Kara let out a sob. _Supergirl of Krypton... For years a symbol of hope and peace. You spend a week among the Amazons and wound thirty people, almost killing a child_.

"I-I want to go home." Her voice echoed in the cave. _*I want to go home. I want to go home. I want to go home*._

The blonde came out of the water, feeling uncomfortable with her wet clothes. The cold entered her soaked body, sticking into her back like icy needles. And the Kryptonian hated the low temperatures with all her soul. _I hate cold, I need a towel_. Her gaze fell on Diana's trunks against the wall of the cavern. Using her x-ray vision, Kara saw through one of the trunks. _There is a towel there._

She walked there, unsticking her wet hair from her neck. She put her hands on the trunk and opened it, taking out the red towel and rubbing it over her head. ( _Please don't hurt Gabrielle...)_

Kara bit her lip, sighing deeply, trying to exhale all her internal fatigue. Her gaze dropped to the bottom of the trunk, where some comfusing shapes could be seen. _What is this?_ Kara bowed a little. _I hope Diana doesn't mind me prying into her trunk._

The Kryptonian slipped down to the floor of the cavern, her soaked body causing a small puddle beneath her. She reached into the trunk, feeling the texture of the objects.

Her hand found something small and rough like wood. Kara took it and pulled it out of the trunk. It was a small wooden doll, carved by hand, of bright colors. Kara narrowed her eyes, recognizing Diana's suit and black hair. _A Wonder Woman doll._ Kara noticed that there was an inscription on the base, a few small letters. _Thank Rao Diana taught me some Greek... Umm, this word Ίώ ', I don't know what it is. Here says δώρο, gift. Ειδικές, special. Νίκη, win... It seems to be a gift. It's pretty cute; the person who made this must have put in a lot of work._

Kara put her hand back into the trunk, feeling curious. Her hand found a flat, thin object, like a sheet of paper. When she pulled it out she realized that it was a very old, yellowed photograph. She opened her eyes in surprise as she recognized who the people in it were _. Diana and Lena, she must be no more than one year old in this photo... And that's Lillian with her daughter._ Both women had the babies in their laps, smiling at the camera, carefree and happy. _Two friends having a good time... Lena and Lutessa playing, ignorant of their future. Kara left the photo on the floor._

The next thing she found were old poems written by hand, on colored papers, thank Rao in English. The elegant italic letter seemed to tell an old story.

 _I did not plan to_

 _drown in a sea of greens_

 _I did not plan to_

 _burn in a violent fire_

 _My desire was to_

 _defend what is mine_

 _And she has stolen more than_

 _a simple suit_

 _I see the sky and it does not look_

 _the same_

 _Blue everywhere and I just_

 _want to see green_

 _She has the fire of Hephaestus_

 _in her soul_

 _the arrogance of Ares_

 _on her lips_

 _the madness of Aphrodite_

 _on her hips_

 _and my common sense in the_

 _palm of her hand_

 _I have known_

 _a thousands eyes_

 _a thousands hands_

 _a thousands laughs_

 _a thousands faces_

 _And if I close my eyes_

 _It's just because I want to_

 _remember yours, Artemis_

"And if I close my eyes..." Kara read aloud. "It's just because I want to remember yours... Lena."

* * *

 **Lena (Luthor) of Themiscyra**

 **3:00 PM**

 _Don't go and get her._

It was easier said than done. Lena sighed deeply, hugging her pillow against her body. She could not stop thinking about Kara's look of sadness in the middle of the Banas camp, as lonely as a small child.

 _Don't go and get her, she needs to be alone._

Instead, Lena sighed and reached out her left hand to the bedside table where her cellphone was. _There is no better distraction than work._

Before she turned on the cellphone, Lena heard the sound of someone knocking at the door, and a soft voice speaking from behind.

"Princess, are you in there?"

Lena frowned. "Who is there?"

"I'm Alkyone, Your Majesty. Your grandmother has sent me. Um, she sends you a gift."

Leaving the phone on the bed, Lena got up and walked to the door. Opening it, she found the Royal guard, slightly uncomfortable as she held a huge bouquet of blue roses in her hands. They were the same color as her eyes, though Alkyone did not seem at all comfortable with the situation.

The bald woman shrugged. "Orders are orders."

"My grandmother sends me these roses?"

Alkyone gave them to her. "The Queen loves roses, these are especially given as farewells." Her scarred face wrinkled. "It's not my wish to question the Queen's tastes, but I find the tulips more beautiful."

"In my home, everyone gives roses." Lena stroked a blue petal. "But I've never seen blue roses before."

"They grow everywhere here." The Royal guard shrugged. "Can I ask if you're alright?"

"I'm fine." Lena sighed, smiling mechanically. "Just a little tired."

"I'll let you rest, then." Her scars crinkled as she smiled. "Now I have to go to the dungeons, if you'll excuse me."

Alkyone turned and began to walk down the hall, with the steady pace of a soldier.

Lena stopped her. "What's going to happen to them, Alkyone?"

She turned. "We are going to question those who are still conscious. But don't fear, none of them will suffer any harm. We're not wild like them, but we need the older ones to tell us their version of what they saw that night." she sighed. "It happened under our noses... I can't help but think it was my fault. I'm sorry, Princess, if Charis hadn't needed help with her wound on her buttocks..."

"That was my fault." Lena shrugged.

"You were a little girl, nothing was your fault." She smiled kindly. "I got these scars protecting your grandmother, Princess. I'd get a thousand more scars to protect you."

"It's not necessary, Alkyone."

"It's my job, Princess." The Amazon went on her way.

Lena closed the door, feeling the thick scent of the blue roses. They were beautiful as sapphires, light as clouds. _It's a pity they don't grow at home._ The CEO laid them on the bed, sitting down next to it and picking up her cellphone again. Lena sighed and turned it on.

She had eighteen missed calls from her vice president.

Frowning, Lena dialed Masrani's number. The Indian man answered immediately.

 _"Blessed be any God that exists in the world! I was about to go mad!"_

"Simon?" asked Lena with concern. "What happened?"

 _"I got it, InGen is ours! I managed to talk directly to her CEO and she has accepted the purchase!"_

Lena let out a gasp of emotion. "That's fabulous, Simon! Well done, I knew you wouldn't disappoint me. When do I have to sign the documents?"

 _""Right now!"_

Lena blinked a few times. "Simon, did I hear correctly?"

 _"Unfortunately. That's why I was so desperate to get in touch with you. InGen is on the verge of breaking up, they are receiving offers from everywhere. I got their CEO to be here in National City to sign the transaction, but Wayne is trying to take advantage. You will have to come back home now."_

"Simon, I'm on the other side of the world!"

Lena saw Kara enter through the door, totally soaked. The blonde looked at her with concern.

 _"And your holy Mother is Wonder Woman! Tell her it's an emergency and come here flying!"_

 _Not in a million years._

"Damn it, Simon, can't that woman wait until tomorrow? My plan was to come back tomorrow."

 _"She's a sick and wheelchair-bound woman, Lena. She's made it clear that she can't be away from home for a long time... I'm afraid it all comes down to this: either you come, or we lose InGen."_

"There has to be another way..."

 _"There is not."_

 ** _*BLAM*_**

Lena kicked the bed violently, biting her lip at the pain. Kara looked at her in alarm.

"Call that Scot and tell her I'll be there." The brunette growled furiously. "I'm running out of battery, make someone call my assistant to prepare my clothes and my office."

 _"Alright."_

"The things I do for L-Corp..."

Lena hung up the phone and had to restrain herself from throwing it against the wall. Every cell in her body trembled with anger and frustration, even disbelief. However, as she looked back at Kara, she forced herself to reassure herself.

"Kara..."

"I heard the conversation." Kara came near to hug her, wetting her in the process, but Lena did not care. "Do you have to return as soon as possible?"

Lena sighed. "Yes."

"I'll take you."

"Are you sure? Are you...?"

"I'm okay." Kara took off her wet shirt. "I promise you, I'm okay. I'll take you, I think I need... a break. To get away from everything and everyone except you." Kara took off her pants.

Lena pulled her into her arms again, rubbing her back in soft, loving circles. She felt Kara's body, which was as hard as a stone, tense like a violin string. The brunette gently kissed her shoulder.

"It wasn't you." whispered Lena. "It was your anger. Everything will be fine, Puppy. I promise, they will only talk to them and then release them."

Kara hugged her gently, burying her head in her neck. "I feel that there are too many things in my head."

Lena's hands came down her back, to the edge of her underwear. "How long will it take to get home flying?"

"Forty minutes flying very fast, an hour and ten minutes going slower. _Umm_." Lena's hands went into her underwear.

"I think we have fifteen minutes for us, then." said Lena before taking off her underwear.

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **3:20 PM**

Alex was sitting in the stands of the Colosseum, staring at her bracelets. She still could not get accustomed to their beauty, silvery and bright as a moon reflected in the sea. Her face was reflecting in them, a face hurt and slightly swollen. Alex had difficulty recognizing her own face _. We shouldn't have been so confident, now everything is a disaster._

Alex felt a twinge of pain in her back, tightening her lips. The agent sighed and reached into the pocket where the painkillers were, taking out the two bottles. She set the white one aside and took a sip of the yellow. _It tastes awful, but at least it works fast._

In the distance, Alex saw the tiny figure of Kara enter the Coliseum. Her sister saw her and hurried up toward her.

"Alex." Kara wrapped her arms around her, with extra care not to hurt her. "Are you okay? What are you doing here alone?"

"I needed to think a little." _There is too much in my head, and they are all bad things. "_ You're okay?"

"I'm better now." Kara smiled. "Um, Alex, I really have a lot of things to talk to you about. Can we talk tonight before dinner? I should be back by then."

"Back?" The older Danvers frowned. "Where are you going?"

"Lena has an emergency at L-Corp. I have to take her back for a few hours."

"Is something wrong?"

"It has to do with those Scots with whom she has been negotiating for the entire month." Kara shrugged. "It will only be for a couple of hours. I just wanted to say goodbye."

"If you'll see me in a couple of hours, it's rather a 'see you later', Karamazov." Alex hugged her sister, stroking her blond hair. "When you return, you will tell me about your trip to the mountain."

"Definitely."

Alex did not see her face, but her sister did not sound very excited.

* * *

 **Artemis of Bana-Mighdall**

 **3:25 PM**

The archery field was Artemis' favorite place in Themiscyra, a wide meadow of green grass with a row of white and red targets. The heat of the afternoon made the white shirt stick to the wounds on her back. The redhead had decided to practice with her bow to clear her mind, to find some peace and not to think that fifty-five of her sisters were wounded or imprisoned.

 _'You were my Shim'Tar, I don't desire to humiliate you like that...'_

 _Why do I feel like I'm the traitor?_

"Artemis."

The Bana turned around, finding a very disheveled Maggie Sawyer. "You look like you almost suffered an amputation."

"People often tell me that." Maggie smiled. "You look like a torn sack today."

"I still look better than you, baby warrior." Artemis aimed the target with her arrow and shot. The arrow landed on the red circle.

"Nice shot." Maggie approached. "Did you know the Banas...?"

"Half of them imprisoned and the other half with Epione." Artemis shot again with her bow. "Hippolyta should have let the girls go home, but for her all the Banas are nothing but dross." _The permanent reminder that her sister is dead_. "Surely they will refuse to speak, pleading that they haven't broken any law. Which is true, but with the possibility of treason, drastic measures are taken."

"Do you know who will ask the questions?"

"Surely Philomela or Alkyone. That woman is always in a bad mood, this will only make it worse."

"Maybe if I talk to..."

"Don't even think about approaching the Banas again." Artemis lowered her bow.

"I meant Philomela and Alkyone." Maggie sighed. "Maybe I could talk to them, share what we know so far."

"Do you think that would be a good idea?" Artemis stared at her. Maggie had dark circles under her eyes.

"Yeah... I think so, but could you tell me again where the suspects were that night? Or where they were supposed to be during the time that Lena must have been kidnapped?"

Artemis bit her lip. "During the Festival of Neit we stayed up late. I put Lena in bed at almost ten o'clock, together with the Royal archer, because the other guard had an infected wound on the buttocks, product of an arrow that Lena put in her seat.

Azula was drinking alcohol and taking advantage of a slave. I saw her go with him to the girls' quarters.

Gabrielle was telling stories to the children around the big bonfire. Diana was going to the kitchens and saw her. When she came back, she was gone.

We saw Xena at the party. We were all dancing and many of us were drunk, but almost at one o'clock in the morning two brunettes began to fight. I'm sure one of them was Xena.

And Akila was standing guard on the west side of the border." Artemis sighed. "But at midnight I saw her at the party. She stole a whole chicken. I think..."

Artemis stopped when she saw Lena approach them quickly, her hair tied up and her lips slightly open. In her green eyes there was a glow of emotion. _She looks happy and frustrated at the same time, I don't know how it's possible._

"Mom, Maggie." Lena stared at them. "Something has happened, I have to leave for a few hours."

"What?"

"Calm down, it's nothing bad." Artemis relaxed. "I talked to my vice president. The Scots I've been negotiating with are finally going to sign, but I need to go home for a few hours."

Maggie blinked. "You have to fly to the other side of the world _now_? That sounds weird, can't it wait until tomorrow?"

"Welcome to the business world." Lena pursed her lips. "If you're not wise, you'll be bankrupt. But if you're not bold, you won't grow. Kara and I will be back tonight."

"Are you willing to fly to get what you want? I'm proud."

Lena blushed. "To acquire that company is important. Many competitors want it, only I will have it." Her eyes shone with determination. _A whole business woman_. "Where is my Mother? I want to tell her I'm leaving."

Artemis wrinkled her mouth. "Diana is talking to your grandmother in her room, although I don't think you can talk to her."

Lena shook her head. "Thank you, Mom. Wish me luck, Maggie."

"Good luck, and don't you dare come back without pizza." Maggie sighed. "If you'll excuse me, I have some things to do."

"I must go, too."

"Hey Hey hey." Artemis stopped Lena. "You're not going anywhere without kissing me."

Lena smiled, and kissed her cheek. "See you later, Mom."

* * *

 **Lena (Luthor) of Themiscyra**

 **3:36 PM**

Lena headed for the hall, where the blind brunette guard was standing firmly like a soldier. The CEO approached her, but before she could think of anything to say the guard opened her mouth.

"Do you need help with something, Princess Lena?"

 _How did she know it was me?_ "I need to talk to my Mother and my grandmother."

"They are... conferring." She said without moving an inch. "You can do what you want, but enter at your own risk."

The blind Philomela stepped aside, allowing Lena to pass. Lena walked down the hallway to her grandmother's room, trying to think how to explain to them that she had to go away for a few hours.

The screams were heard from the middle of the hall.

 _"For Hera's Sake! How dare you lie to me...!"_

 ** _"Mother, if you'd let me explain ..."_**

 _"...to make Lena lie to me!? What the Tartarus were you thinking?! You lied to me!"_

 ** _"Because I knew you would do exactly what you did now and ...!"_**

 _"My own daughter..."_

 ** _"...you would imprison all the Banas! You're not objective when it comes to the Banas! You hate them! And we can't afford another war like...!"_**

 _"My personal feelings have nothing to do with this! There is only one truth here and it's that you cannot trust the Banas!"_

 ** _"...the one we had forty years ago! Do you want to destroy the...!?"_**

 _"That you have managed to tame one of them doesn't mean that the others are trustworthy! One of them kidnapped...!"_

 ** _"...you're not like this, mother, what...!?"_**

 _"...my granddaughter, they destroyed our family and threatened the girls you want to adopt! You're telling me that you're not going to do anything!? That we should just let them go!? No way! None of them will leave this island before we find the traitor who took my granddaughter and don't think that...!"_

Lena took a deep breath and turned around, going back to where she had come from. _I can't handle this now, I'm sorry._ When she reached where the blind guard was, she sighed deeply.

"Could you tell them I've been here, please?" Lena rubbed her hands together. "Tell them I've had to go home for a few hours for a business issue. Tell them that everything is fine and that I'll see them tonight."

"Of course, Princess."

* * *

 **Supergirl**

 **3:45 PM**

Kara finished adjusting her cape, happy to feel the texture of her suit against her skin again. _At last I feel like myself_. The blonde opened the door to her room, running quickly out of the Palace.

Lena was sitting on the steps of the entrance with her bracelets in her hands, waiting for her.

"Ready, Potsticker?"

Lena gave an involuntary jump. "Kara, please don't jump out of nowhere like that."

"Oh, sorry. Are you ready?"

"I still have to put on my bracelets. Can you help me?"

Kara took the two bracelets in her hands and helped Lena put them on, smiling like a child, genuinely happy for the first time all day. She saw her eyes reflected on the shiny surface of the bracelets.

"Are you ready now?"

"One more thing." Lena shrugged and pulled a black bandage from her pocket. Carefully, the CEO tied it around her eyes.

Kara rolled her eyes. "Seriously?"

"If I don't see the heights, I won't be afraid and it will be like a... ride, I suppose."

"Earthlings." ¬¬

Kara firmly embraced her girlfriend and flew off.

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **4:10 PM**

Maggie could not help the déjà-vu as she descended into the dungeons. It was the same darkness as in the L-Corp basement, but much deeper, much more mysterious. The detective forced herself to banish those thoughts from her mind as she walked down the torch-lit corridor.

There were Banas on either side of the hallway, looking at her with aggressive, hurt eyes. Maggie could not help but recognize their faces. _Korra and Asami_. She advanced. _Xena and Gabrielle._ She kept moving forward. _Hermione and Ginny, even the children are here_. Maggie felt a pang of guilt.

The two guards stood silently by the last cell, with swords in their hands. Maggie recognized the blonde Amazon with the scar on her face, and the Royal brown-skinned guard.

Persephone's face brightened at the sight of her. "Maggie..."

She ignored her and spoke to the Royal guard. "I need to talk to Akila."

Charis frowned. "She hasn't spoken to anyone, nor to Alkyone or to me. I doubt she wants to speak to you, Lady Of Sawyer."

"My job is to talk to people." Maggie tried to look as professional as she could. "Let me try to talk to her."

"What if she hurts you?" asked Persephone with a frown.

"She won't."

Charis shrugged, her eyes shining in the torchlight. "We can't protect you there."

 _I don't need your protection_. "I'm willing to take the risk."

Charis stared at her, squinting. Persephone had not stopped looking at her from top to bottom at all times.

Finally, the Royal guard relaxed her posture. "Fine, I'll let you try." Charis took the keys from her belt and opened the cell door. Maggie entered immediately.

Akila's cell was a little larger in comparison to the others, with a thatch floor and a small torch on the wall. Maggie could not help her heart from accelerating in her chest as she saw the Shim'Tar sitting quietly on the floor, her legs crossed and her eyes closed. Despite not seeming dangerous, Maggie knew she could become lethal in a second.

"I didn't expect to see you here." Akila opened her eyes. "Have you come to take revenge or question me?"

Maggie sat down on the floor. "I have come to apologize."

Akila arched an eyebrow. "Apologize, eh? And why are you saying sorry?"

"Because I have done to you what people have done to me all my life: I have judged you without knowing you." ( _'You won't share showers with the rest of the team, Sawyer! Your inclinations are well known to everyone._ ') Maggie clenched her fists. "I have made a mistake with you, and I have treated you all as criminals without giving you the benefit of the doubt."

"You're not the first. Everyone compares us with the Themys and their island of eternal happiness, we have always been the marginalized Amazons." Akila looked at her with old eyes. "Artemis and I wanted to change that when we were little. She wanted to be Shim'Tar and I wanted to grow up to conquer Themiscyra and steal everything from them: its stupid island, is immortality... We were stupid girls in the middle of a war. Then I realized the truth."

"What truth?"

Akila sighed. "That neither we nor anybody needs the... divine _blessing_ of the Themys. That we have to follow our own path, to improve our society by our own merits, without wanting to be like anybody else."

Maggie sighed. "Everything that happened yesterday... Did you have pity or was it just to scare me?"

"I'm getting old, little one." Akila shrugged. "This is not how I would like to spend my last years as Shim'Tar. We have very firm rules, and one of them is not to forgive offenses. For many years we have lacked many things, but never our pride."

"Maybe you could have something else." Maggie shrugged.

Akila laughed. "Not me, Maggie, I'm too old to learn new tricks. But the young ones?" She smiled. "They will be much better Bana-Mighdall warriors than all who have been before them."

Maggie sighed deeply, looking at the Shim'Tar as if seeing her for the first time. "Akila, could you talk to me about what you saw the night Lena was kidnapped, please?"

The Shim'Tar shrugged and rested her face in her hand. "The party started at nine o'clock, but it was my turn to stand at the city's border..."

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **4:24 PM**

Alex advanced toward the archery field, taking another sip of the painkiller from the yellow bottle. _Damn, my jaw hurts like hell_. The agent put the bottle in her pocket again, next to her Snitch, the other bottle, and her bracelets. She advanced to Artemis' figure a few feet away. The redhead wore a white linen shirt that covered her back **_(*ZAS ZAS ZAS*),_** a huge bow in her hands and a sword in her belt. Alex watched as she aimed at her target in the distance and shot. The arrow stuck in the center of the red circle.

"Artemis."

The redhead turned. Alex watched her lips tighten. "You really got a good beating."

"I've had worse."

"For real?"

"I can't remember any now, but I've probably got worse beatings." Alex tried to smile, but only managed to grimace. She folded her arms. "I'm glad to see you're... you're..."

"Fine." The Amazon smiled a little. "I'm fine, Alexandra." her gaze dropped to her arms. "Why aren't you wearing your bracelets?"

 _'It seems that you're not so perfect after all.'_

Alex took the bracelets from the pocket of her jacket, putting them in front of the redhead. "Because I don't deserve them." She took a deep breath. "I have come to give them back. I thank you for believing in me, but..."

"Are you giving up?"

"N-No, I'm... I'm..."

"What happened wasn't your fault." Artemis said seriously. "You can't control the things that happen around you, Alexandra, but you can be prepared to face them. That's what a warrior does, remember?" she took her wrists, bringing the bracelets closer to her owner again. "Don't make decisions when you're sad, they tend to be the worst."

Alex bit her lip. "You shouldn't have taken those lashes for me." she felt her eyes grow heavy. "Let me see your back."

"No." she said firmly.

"Artemis, I need to see it."

"Wow, no one had been so anxious to remove my clothes since Diana on our wedding night."

"I'm not kidding." The agent grunted. "I need to see what happened because of me."

"No, you don't need to." Artemis squeezed her shoulder. "If I show you my back, you won't be able to forget what happened. I don't want you to torture yourself any more than you already are. Forget about it."

Alex let out a sob. "Why do you care so much for me?"

"Because you deserve it." she wrapped her in a gentle embrace. "We do what we do to protect the people we care about, Alexandra. Maybe you don't understand it because you're still young, but there are times when it's better to bleed."

Alex shrugged. "I know, it's just... It's not easy for me to be in debt to someone."

"I understand, actually. Well, if you don't want to be in debt to me you can do something for me." Artemis drew her sword from her belt. "My sword needs cleaning."

Alex took the sword in her hands. It was a sharp, glowing weapon, with an ' ** _A_** ' engraved on the hilt. "It's quite light."

"Diana gave it to me on our first Christmas." Artemis smiled sideways. "She made it for herself, with the help of the blacksmith, I think. I want you to clean it until it shines."

Alex rolled her eyes. _Anyway, I have to do something while I wait for Kara to come back_. The agent was going to respond to the redhead, but at that moment she saw two figures approaching where they were. One of them was the Royal archer, the blonde Myrto with a big bow on her back; the other was the little Io, carrying a huge quiver in her hands, with a worried face.

Myrto smiled and greeted them. "Hey! Teaching the girl how to use a bow, Artemis?"

"I was just practicing, Myrto." The redhead shrugged.

The blonde laughed shortly. "You want to have a little competition? Please save me from practicing just with Io, the blacksmith could not hit a Titan."

"Hey!" Io frowned.

Artemis looked at Alex with amusement. "I guess a little competition wouldn't be bad. Do you want to participate, Alexandra?"

"No thanks." Alex said with a yawn. "You do it, I'd rather watch."

* * *

 **Supergirl**

 **4:39 PM**

Kara was flying across the Atlantic Ocean, feeling the soft, deadly embrace of her girlfriend on her back. The sun was reflected in the endless water, creating lights across the surface. Lena had not spoken for the past twenty minutes.

"I hope you're not bored, we're not far from home."

"Me? Bored?" Lena snorted. "I'm too busy trying to stay calm. Doesn't your cape have a radio or something? I'll make a radio for your cape."

"Actually, that's not a bad idea." Kara laughed. "Maybe if you take the bandage off..."

"Sorry Puppy, that won't happen." Incredibly, Lena tightened her grip. Kara could almost feel it.

"Do you want me to sing again?"

"I don't want to hear 'Let it go' again, thank you."

"Then I'll sing Fifth Harmony."

"Kara..."

 _"You don't gotta go to work, work, work, work, work, work, work! But you gotta put in work, work, work, work, work, work, work!"_

The Kryptonian sang for ten more minutes, pausing when she saw some colorful figures moving in the water. _What...?_ Kara opened her eyes with surprise and excitement as she recognized what lay beneath them in the ocean _. It can't be!_ The blonde smiled like crazy.

"Kara, what's going on? Why are you stopping?"

"Lena, take off the bandage."

"No!"

"Take it off, you have to see this!"

The CEO grunted and took off the bandage. Kara listened to her heart beating like crazy and then her breathing stopping. "Oh my God, those are..."

"Mermaids!"

On the surface of the ocean, a group of twenty mermaids played with a yellow ball. Their laughter reached Kara's super ears, a melodious sound similar to the clink of a bell. All mermaids had long hair and scales on their arms, with glittering tails that reflected the sunlight.

"Oh by Rao! Diana told me about them and I didn't believe her!"

"I quit, my life was strange enough and now I'm seeing mermaids." Lena dropped her head on Kara's shoulder.

"They look friendly, let's say hello!"

"Kara, no! They can be danger _-ah!"_

Kara descended to where the mermaids were jumping in the water, laughing and having fun. A group of five mermaids and a ( _mermaid man?)_ were talking serenely, making jokes that made Kara laugh ( _'what's the funniest fish? Clown fish!'_ ). The man was the first to see them, a look of alarm appearing in his blue eyes.

"Hi hi, it's a pleasure to meet you!" Kara greeted happily. All the mermaids looked at them in surprise. "I'm Supergirl from Krypton and this is Lena."

"Dear God..."

The man looked at them curiously. "Well, it's a pleasure and a surprise to meet you, Supergirl. I'm Arthur, the King of Atlantis."

"Wait, you're Arthur!? Aquaman!?" shouted Kara excitedly.

"Yes, that's right. How do you know my nickname?"

"Diana told me about you."

"Do you know Diana?" His eyes shone. "By Poseidon! I haven't seen her since her wedding! How is she?"

"She's very well, in fact we just came from Themiscyra."

"I assumed it by your friend's bracelets." Aquaman looked at Lena. "Are you an Amazon, girl?"

"You could say that." Lena answered from behind Kara.

Aquaman narrowed his eyes. "You look familiar... You look like Diana, are you related to her?"

"Yes... I'm her... daughter."

"Amazing!" Aquaman smiled. "How time flies! Tell your mother to come visit me some day. Are you taking a ride, Princess?"

Kara smiled. "We're going to America, actually." _This is so amazing!_

"Are you in a hurry?" Aquaman showed them the yellow ball. "You can play with us if you want."

Kara looked at Lena with puppy eyes. _Please say yes! Please say yes! Please say yes! THEY'RE MERMAIDS LENA!_

Lena sighed. "Just a few minutes, I have to attend an important meeting."

* * *

 **Diana of Themiscyra**

 **4:54 PM**

"Enough!" Diana gasped. She felt so tired, as if they had been fighting for an eternity. Her mother still looked totally furious. "I'll release the Banas with or without your consent!"

"Nobody is going to free the Banas, Diana! I forbid you!"

"There are little girls in the dungeon, Mother!"

"ALRIGHT!" The Queen almost broke a glass. "Take out the little girls if you want! But only them!"

 ** _*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*_**

The _conference_ was interrupted by violent blows on the door. " _My Queen! Princess! It's an emergency!"_

Diana exchanged a brief glance with her mother and ran to the door, where she found a very distressed Philomela. "Philomela! What's wrong!?"

"Akila!" shouted the blind guard with black hair. "Maggie of Sawyer came into her cell believing that she could talk to her! But Akila took her hostage and managed to escape to the Temple of Hera! She threatens to slice her neck if we approached!"

Diana felt terror running through her veins. When she turned, her mother already had two swords in her hands.

"Come on, Diana."

Diana took one of the swords and they followed Philomela.

* * *

 **Lena Luthor of Themiscyra**

 **5:25 PM**

Lena breathed in the familiar air of her city, feeling the cold that assured night was near. The sunset in National City was a curious spectacle from above. Lena would certainly prefer to see it from the safe ground, but if she watched the sunset she did not have to look down.

"I can't believe that Aquaman invited me to ride on his seahorses!" Kara said excitedly.

Lena frowned, seeing the figure of L-Corp in the distance, closer and closer. "You can't breathe underwater, Puppy."

Kara gasped. "Ooohhh" :(

"Don't worry." Lena reassured her girlfriend. "We'll think of something so you can go."

Kara landed gently on the balcony of Lena's office. The brunette did her best to hide the almost orgasmic pleasure she felt when her feet touched the floor.

"You see? Flying isn't so bad."

 _Smile, Lena, just smile_. "Of course Puppy, thank you for bringing me."

Kara took her face in her hands and kissed her.

"Good luck in your meeting, Potsticker. I hope you're satisfied after it's over."

"Me too." _If InGen isn't mine at the end of the night, I'll kill Simon. Or worse, I'll fire him._

"I'll go for a ride around the city. When you're done, come out onto the balcony and shout 'Ice Cream!'."

"Ice Cream?"

Kara shrugged. "If you prefer, shout 'Chocolate'."

Supergirl flew off and Lena watched her with a smile for a few seconds, then she walked into her office.

The first thing she saw was her carefully folded clothes on her desk, next to a photograph they had taken two weeks ago. In it, Lena hugged Kara from behind, with Artemis and Diana on either side of her, and Maggie and Alex on either side of Kara. Lena looked at the picture for a moment. _I finally have a family._

Andrea Sachs and Masrani entered through the door. Her vice president let out a sigh of relief. "Thank God you're here! The Scots are on their way!"

Lena took the clothes off the desk. "Andrea, go to the other side of the city and buy two pizzas and three kilos of chocolate... Yes, you've heard properly. And you, Simon, let the Scots come in as soon as they arrive. I must get the ocean salt off me."

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **5:27 PM**

Maggie pulled her hair in frustration, knowing there was something wrong.

"Were you standing guard the whole time?" She asked again.

"Yes."

 _That's not what Artemis said._

Maggie tried to calm her heartbeat. "And you're quite sure you didn't see anything suspicious?"

Akila sighed, biting her lips. "No... I wasn't on duty the whole time." confessed the Shim'Tar. "At midnight I felt hungry and went to the party. It took me less than five minutes."

Maggie felt the sweat going down her spine. "You left! Why didn't you say it before? That might be the moment they took Lena away!"

"It wasn't. "

"How do you know?" Asked the detective, trying to be patient.

"Because I didn't leave my post unattended, Maggie." Akila rolled her eyes. "One of the guards happened to pass by. I asked her to stay there for a minute, and I went to get something to eat."

"One of the guards?"

"Don't waste your brain." Akila snorted. "They live for their Queen, they would kill themselves before allowing anyone to touch Hippolyta's hair or her family's."

"Who was the guard?" _It could only have been Myrto..._

"Alkyone."

Maggie's throat got stuck, as if she had swallowed a stone.

"Alkyone was helping Charis with an infected wound."

"Um, no." Akila narrowed her eyes. "And if she did, she didn't spend all night with her because at midnight she took my place for a few minutes."

"It can't be..."

"I'm telling you that it's impossible for a Themy to be the traitor you're looking for. The Royal guards? They have it worse than the others. Their only life purpose is Hippolyta. And it was only five minutes, no one could have taken the princess out so... fast." Akila's eyes widened in horror. "W-What do you have in your jacket?"

Maggie looked at her jacket, not understanding.

"Who gave you that!?"

The Shim'Tar pounced on Maggie. The detective struggled trying to defend herself, but Akila did not attack her, only took the blue rose that was inside her jacket.

"Who gave you this! Who gave it to you!?"

"The blacksmith!" _Fucking hell, this woman is crazy!_ "It was a farewell gift..."

Akila took her by the jacket and pulled her to her feet. "Of course it's a farewell gift!" She threw the rose to the floor. "The blue roses are given to those condemned to death!"

"What?!"

 ** _*Zlac*_**

Maggie and Akila turned toward the cell entrance, where Charis and Persephone had locked the door.

"Blue roses for those condemned to death." Charis looked at her with an expression of fury. "So that their eyes see beauty for the last time."

* * *

 **Diana of Themiscyra**

 **5:30 PM**

Diana and her mother hurried into the Temple of Hera, following Philomela. A huge group of Amazons was crowding in the center, telling someone to release the knife, that there was no escape. _Maggie!_

Diana and Hippolyta advanced among the Amazons, trying to push them away. "Make way!" _Maggie!_ "Make way!"

At last Diana managed to reach the center of the crowd...

...But neither Maggie nor Akila were there, only Alkyone with two blue roses in her hands.

Diana blinked a couple of times, unable to understand what was happening. She looked at the faces around her and it was as if she saw them for the first time, dead faces, the true faces of her sisters. "What is...?"

She felt a quick, terrible pain in her belly. Philomela had stuck a knife in her stomach. She pushed her instinctively, more terrified than she had ever been in her life. _This is not real_. Diana heard her mother shouting something, her name. She tried to lift her sword, but suddenly she felt weak... very weak...

The world began to revolve around her. Thousands of faces looking at her. Fear, sadness, hatred, loneliness, guilt, the despair of her mother...

Diana fell to the floor.

"Don't bother, princess." Philomela got up and stood in front of Diana. The woman removed the red bandage from her eyes, showing Diana her empty sockets. "The knife is poisoned."

Diana tried to move to the right, see something, see her mother. And she did, feeling the blood flowing from her belly, seeing the horrified face of her mother, listening to Alkyone's voice.

"Themyscira has declared itself in revolution from this moment. What a tragedy you have spent your last moments fighting with your daughter, Hippolyta."

The last thing Diana saw before she lost consciousness was the crowd moving toward her mother, with knives in her hands.

* * *

 **Lena Luthor of Themiscyra**

 **5:31 PM**

The woman kept talking about trifles, and Lena was beginning to lose her temper. _Easy, Lena, easy._ The afternoon light streamed through the office windows, giving her blue eyes a magical glow.

"I had just entered the company when Lionel Luthor visited Scotland, a year before his death." The woman smiled. "Jason was even younger than I, but he remembers it better because he helped bring his luggage to his hotel. Didn't you, Jason?"

Jason Teague crossed his legs and smiled. "He would have been more handsome without that beard."

 _The last thing I want is to talk about Lionel_. "Yes, that beard made him look older." _Come on, I don't have all night._

"He was an example of perseverance." The woman smiled with dreamy eyes. "Maybe his personal life wasn't perfect, but it was he who made LuthorCorp a multinational corporation. Not anyone can do that."

 _He was a bastard, but he loved his job_. _I recognize that_. "Lionel was good with business."

"Your father was more than good with business, Miss Luthor."

 _He wasn't my father_. Lena began to feel irritated. "He and Lillian loved Scotland."

"Scotland is a beautiful country." The woman laughed and bit her lip. "I'm not native of there, Miss Luthor. I was born in America."

"No one would think it by you accent."

"Well, and you have an... mmm..."

"Irish, I studied in Ireland."

"Wow, we're two Americans from foreign lands."

Lena shrugged, taking advantage of the fact that the woman had stopped talking to take the papers. "These are the transfer documents, you can take all your time to read them and make sure everything is in order."

"It won't be necessary." The brown-haired woman sighed. "I won't be signing anything."

Lena blinked a couple of times, confused. _What?_ She looked at Mr. Teague. The blond man was staring at his fingernails, uninterested in conversation.

"Did you say you won't be signing anything?"

"I didn't come here to sign anything."

 _Simon is fired_. "Well, tell me." Lena said furiously. "If you haven't crossed the world to close a deal, why are you wasting my time?"

The woman looked at her with bright eyes and bit her lip. "I came here to kill you, Lena."

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **5:32 PM**

Alex felt a pang of pain in her head, as if a hammer were hitting her frontal lobe _. This damn pain won't leave me alone._ The agent reached into her pocket for her painkillers. Unfortunately, the yellow bottle was empty. _Fuck_. Instead, Alex took the white bottle trying to contain her frustration, removing the small lid and taking a good sip. _This has a sweeter taste_. Alex took another sip.

"I don't have all the time in the world, Ant." Artemis growled at Io. The little blacksmith had not hit any shot all afternoon, and she had been aiming for three minutes. "If you can't do it just go away, worthless child."

"I can do it!" Io frowned.

"The evidence says otherwise." The redhead looked at her with annoyance.

"I can do it if I want to! Tell her, Myrto!"

The blonde Amazon sighed. "She can do it if she wants to. Satisfied, blacksmith?"

Alex felt a sudden dizziness move slowly through her body.

Artemis smiled disdainfully. "Whatever, I don't know why I'm wasting my time." The red-haired Amazon turned her head. Alex saw her eyes narrow in concern. "Alexandra? Are you alright?"

"I'm ok..." Alex discovered that it was very difficult to move her lips, and any part of her body. Like it was a nightmare and she could not wake up. "No... Art..."

Her muscles froze, and Alex fell forward. _'Alex!'_ The redhead caught her in her arms, spreading her body on the floor and kneeling beside her. Alex had difficulty recognizing her face, sinister shadows clouded the corner of her vision. She tried to speak, but the words did not come out of her mouth.

"Alexandra! What's wrong?! "Artemis removed a lock of her hair. "Can you hear me?! Can you move!?"

"Yy... yyy..."

The redhead opened her eyes and reached into Alex's pocket. _There are shadows, shadows, shadows everywhere._ Artemis found the white bottle, opening it and smelling it. Her eyes widened in horror. "Morpheus Grapes!"

 _I don't know if I'm... awake... or asleep..._

"Alexandra, listen to me!" Her voice sounded too far away. "Alex, easy! I'll take you to Epione! You're suffering hallucinations! Everything will be...!"

 ** _*KRIZK*_**

Alex found herself face to face with the tip of an arrow, stained crimson, coming out of the Bana's chest. Artemis looked at her chest in disbelief, her eyes shining like bonfires. "Alex..."

And behind her was Io with tears in her eyes, and the bow in her hands. "I told you I could do it if I want to."

 _Please... let it be... a nightmare..._

And then she lost touch with reality and real nightmares enveloped her.

* * *

 **Supergirl**

 **5:52 PM**

Kara flew aimlessly, thinking of something to do while she waited for Lena to finish her meeting. _Maybe I should go find Winn... Damn, we didn't bring him a present! Now he is going to be upset!_

She was flying close to Catco when she saw the alien, a girl with tanned skin and red hair like a bonfire. The Kryptonian's eyes widened in surprise. She was hovering over the building with a frightened expression.

"Hey!" Supergirl approached carefully, preparing in case the alien was hostile. "What are you doing? You're going to scare the people."

The alien sobbed. "Klupnik... plu... Zolak."

 _A Tamaranean!_ "Stay still! Don't move!"

"Klupnik plu Zolak!" Shouted the Tamaranean. "Darrdo, klupnik plu Zolak!"

"I have no idea what you're saying!"

 _"AaaaAAaArgg!"_ The alien let out a frightening scream. "Orban..."

The Tamaranean threw a starbolt in her direction. Kara prepared to dodge it, realizing very late that the projectile was not aimed at her, but behind her, where a woman was watching everything from the window of her apartment. **_NO!_**

The woman exploded into pieces.

Kara watched the green fire with horror.

"KLUPNICK PLU ZOLAK!" Shouted the Tamaranean. "KLUPNIK AKEM!"

Kara screamed and lunged at the Tamaranean.

* * *

 **Lena**

 **5:32 PM**

The wind streaming through the open window softly caressed the back of her neck. The sun filled her office with an orange glow, shining in the blue eyes of the woman in front of her, eyes in which there were a thousand emotions mixed together.

"What did you say?" Lena said, killing the thick silence.

The woman sighed, her hand caressing the armrest of her wheelchair. "I said I came to kill you, Lena."

"Oh." The brunette's hand slid under her desk, searching for the panic button. "Many people want to kill me for various reasons. Why do you want to kill me?"

The InGen's CEO pursed her lips. "Jason."

Lena's desk flew up violently and crashed into the wall.

An alarm went off in her head, making the CEO step back. She was not scared, she was terrified. _This isn't true_. Lena could not stop staring at the heap of broken wood that had been her desk. _This isn't true, this isn't true._

Lena was moved by an invisible force, a gigantic ghostly hand that forced her to sit back in her chair. Mr. Teague sighed and rested his face in his hand. "Can I detonate the bomb now or are you going to have a chat with her?"

 _Bomb…_

The woman sighed. "Not yet, I have to talk to her."

"You and your sentimentality..."

"She has to know why she has to die." The woman advanced in her wheelchair. Lena felt her throat tighten. "Let her talk. I want a conversation, not a monologue."

Jason Teague rolled his eyes. Lena felt her throat break free, panting as if she had just run a marathon.

"I don't know who you are..." Lena trembled with rage or fear, she did not know. "But you don't know who you're messing with."

The brown-haired woman sighed. "Yes, I do know, and too well. Believe me when I tell you that no one will come to save you."

"What do you want?" Lena snarled.

"It's not about what we want." She sighed. "But what we need."

Lena looked at her blankly.

"I won't lie to you by saying that this is not personal, because it is partly personal. You and I are going to have a very long talk... Lena." The woman gritted her teeth. "I'm going to tell you many things. I'm going to tell you about our Creator, the One and Only who created everything."

"What do you mean with everything?" _Kara, where are you? Kara, Kara!_

"The Amazons call it Existence." She clasped her hands together. "But you may know it by the name of Multiverse."

 _'Did you know I have friends from another universe, Lena? Barry, Oliver, Sara... '_

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yes, yes you know." She looked at her with cold eyes. "And if you don't know, you suspect it. The laws of the Multiverse are very strict: for our survival, all the Gaps, all the Unique, must be eradicated before they grow and become strong. That's Veritas's mission."

"And I suppose you're going to tell me what Veritas is, don't you, Miss Mercer?"

"Veritas is the Truth that protects the world." the woman said dryly. "That was my mother's mission... but instead, she deceived us all and adopted you."

Lena felt as if someone had punched her in the heart. The woman in front of her could not take her gaze away from hers, an intense hatred shining in her ice-blue eyes. "It's not true." The woman was silent, giving Lena time to absorb the information. "You're dead."

"My legs are dead." The woman touched her right leg. "Veritas did what they could for me, but Duchenne's Muscular Dystrophy took my legs away."

Lena felt a couple of tears fall from her eyes to her chin. "Lutessa."

The woman shook her head, smiling sadly. "Everyone knows me as Tess Mercer." She sighed deeply, her eyes bright. "But for you I'm Lutessa Lena Luthor."

* * *

 **The Circle (Alkyone, Myrto, Charis, and Philomela) belong to Wonder Woman**  
 **Jason Teague (?) belongs to Smallville (The man Alex collided with in Chapter 15)**  
 **Lutessa Lena Luthor belongs to Smallville (the wheelchair-bound woman Kara saved in Chapter 16, the Woman in the Store with Winn and M'gann in Chapter 25)**  
 **Veritas belongs to Smallville**  
 **…This is where you realize that I told you who the traitor was from the beginning.**  
 **Artemis in chapter 10: "So we took you. The three of us, and your grandmother's four personal gaurds (...) Then you began to explore around you, always accompanied by a guard (...) Even the Queen Anahid laughed when you put an arrowhead in Charis' seat, one of the guards."**  
 **And by Rao/Hera/Ishtar/, what did Charis tell Lena as soon as she met her? 'I hope you don't put an arrow on my seat again.' What I was trying to tell you at the time was "DON'T FORGET THAT THEY WERE THERE".**  
 **And about Lutessa, some deduced it by the photographs (why would anyone steal the pictures of a dead girl? Because she's not dead, and with her baby photos they can get pictures of her in adulthood), and by the conversation between Winn and Maggie during breakfast in "The found Princess" (about getting photos of adults from their old photos)**  
 **Well, congratulations to the attentive people.**  
 **The next chapter will be divided into two parts: tomorrow Themyscira and later National City.**


	29. Lena and the Great Monster

**Songs I used to write: Archangel (Two Steps from Hell), Winds of Winter (Game of Thrones Soundtrack)**  
 **All characters used in this narration belong to DC Comics (and DC comics's Smallville)... and Jurassick Park, and The Devil Wears Prada, and Xena the Warrior Princess, and Legend of Korra, and The 100, and Harry Potter xD**  
 **The first scene was blatantly inspired by its equivalent of Smallville, with Lionel instead of Lillian.**

* * *

 **The Hidden Luthor**

 **March 1994**

The little girl known as Tess Mercer was sitting in the passenger seat of the car, watching a tiny ant walk slowly out of the window. The little insect had been separated from the rest of his family, probably getting lost by accident and ending up on the human vehicle, instead of returning to his home in the anthill. _They took you away from your family, didn't they?_ Lutessa neared her finger to the windowpane, with the intention to find out if the ant could see it, from the other side of the invisible barrier that separated them.

A drop of rain fell on the window, causing the ant to fall and be lost forever.

The sound of water hitting the top of the car soon reached the ears of the eight-year-old girl. Reflected in the window, she saw the image of her mother watching the road with her lips tightly pressed, her blond hair pulled back into a ponytail.

Lillian did not look at her when she spoke. "I know you're angry."

Lutessa waited a little, trying to force herself not to cry. "You promised me." she whispered.

"I know, and I'm sorry." she sighed, turning right on the dusty road. "You know I wouldn't do this if I had another choice."

Lutessa just looked out the window, looking for any kind of distraction for her desolate feelings. The mountains of Scotland were not as magnificent as she had believed, they looked more like mounds of dirt coming out of the earth, like a rash coming out of an old face.

"Lex hasn't answered my letter."

Lillian pursed her lips. "He's having a lot of homework at school."

"He's never answered my letters, Mommy." Lutessa looked at her thumbs. "Is he ashamed of me?"

"Don't say that." she looked at her with angry eyes. "Lutessa, your brother can't be a part of your life right now... I know it's hard to understand, but I need you to trust me when I tell you this is the best."

"B-But..." she could not help but stutter. "B-But you're leaving me. Please Mommy, I promise I won't insist again on seeing Lex and Daddy. I promise I won't insist on leaving home again."

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that a silhouette had appeared in the distance; a very large building, with the shape of the mansions Lutessa saw on television.

Lillian slowed down, staring at the mansion hidden in the mountains. "Lutessa..."

"I'll stay in the house, I promise. B-But please..." she sobbed. "Please don't leave me."

Lillian sighed deeply, taking her time before speaking. "You're special, Lutessa." she finally looked at her, her blue eyes dry but swollen. "That's why you've never been with us, why you have to stay here in Scotland. You're going to do things no one else can do."

"You always say that, but I can't even walk." _That's why you replaced me with another girl._

"It doesn't matter." Lillian parked next to the mansion on the mountain. "A Luthor overcomes adversity, never being defeated by anything or anyone. And what if you can't walk? As long as you have intellect, cunning and strength, no one will get in your way, Lutessa."

She did not answer for a while, both silent, without getting out of the car. Her mother sighed, and the little girl felt tears stream down her cheeks _. I don't want to stay here_. She bit her lip. _I don't want to be special._ "Mommy..." _I just want to go home with you, like her._ "Please..." _You even gave her my name._

Lillian got out of the car, her blond hair soaking wet with the rain. Lutessa heard the noise she made when she opened the trunk of the car to get her wheelchair. Her mother approached and opened the door on her side, leaving the chair already armed next to the car. Then she took Lutessa in her arms and sat her there. The little girl felt the raindrops fall all over her body, from her hair to her neck, down her hands to her useless legs. "Mommy..."

"You'll be better off here than in America." her mother said dryly. "I promise I'll come and see you as soon as possible."

"Mommy, please..."

Lillian stopped in the rain, her wet hair clinging to her face as the only survivor a storm.

"Please... Please don't leave me. I'll do anything."

"I don't want to leave you, Lutessa." the girl felt a long-nailed hand caressing her hair. "But life isn't about what we want, it's about what we need. I hope someday you can understand it."

"N-No, n-no. Mom please, please don't leave me, please..."

Lutessa was an impotent witness to how her entreaties were ignored, her mother pushing the chair back toward the mansion. They climbed up the ramp, their bodies sheltering from the rain under the porch's roof, taking away Lutessa's only comfort.

Lillian knocked on the door, making a hollow sound that was similar to a hit in a coffin. The mansion was huge, three times larger than the house where she had lived (hidden) all her life.

"Mommy..."

The door of the mansion opened, revealing a woman with white hair and an old face, her sky-blue eyes so clear they looked almost white. The woman did not look at her and only smiled at her mother, her smile sharp like a shark's. "Oh, Lillian, I'm glad to see you're on time." the woman looked at her. "Wow, you've grown since the last time I saw you, Lutessa."

"Do... Do you know me?"

"A bit." the woman sighed. "We'll get to know each other better over the next few years. You can call me Granny Goodness, all the kids do it."

Lillian looked at her with icy eyes. "If I find out you've hurt her..."

"Don't make promises you may not be able to keep, Lillian Prior Luthor." the woman interrupted, still smiling like a shark. "Veritas will make her an important person, someone to watch over the safety of everything we know. Say goodbye, it's getting late and the children have to have dinner. "

Her mother looked at the old woman with such rage that Lutessa thought she was going to bite her. But then she lowered her gaze and their eyes met for the first time in hours, the same color of frozen blue freezing all around them.

"Lutessa..." Lillian squeezed her shoulder gently. "Never forget that you are a Luthor." her hand rose to her face. "And the Luthors have always had a mission in our lives: to achieve with our intelligence what other people can't achieve with their strength. And to do that, you have to stay here."

"B-But why me?" she whispered. "Why don't you want me with you?"

"Stop now, Lutessa." she sighed and looked away. "Enough." her eyes opened again. "I'll be back in three weeks to see how you're doing."

Lutessa felt the hand leave her face wet, watching helplessly as her mother stepped off the porch and advanced to the car again, without looking back.

"Mommy, no! Please wait! Don't leave me!"

Lillian kept walking. Lutessa felt the old woman's hand on her shoulder, squeezing too lightly, as if she did not want to touch her too much.

"Mommy, I love you."

Lillian stopped in the rain, totally soaked and rigid, as if she were the last woman on earth. When she spoke, she did not turn around. "I love you too, Lutessa. You're my only daughter." she looked up at the gray sky. "No one can replace you."

* * *

 **The Name Thief**

 **5:40 PM**

Lena heard a distant buzz in her ears, a noise from another world torturing her brain, voices distant as ghosts, speaking in a language incomprehensible to her. Her vision began to cloud, the face in front of her blurring like an image seen underwater. She blinked, but the face did not become clearer, only the blue eyes that were looking back at Lena. Those lips were moving, but she could not understand the words.

Jason Teague sighed. "She's in shock. I don't think she can understand you, Tess."

The woman in wheelchair snapped her fingers a couple of times in front of Lena's face. The brunette could see the hand in front of her, those long, elegant nails. And behind them, Tess Mercer's blurred face, a face now she realized was similar to Lillian's.

"Lutessa." said a voice similar to Lena's.

The brown-haired woman turned to the man at her side. "She needs a glass of water."

"You're kidding me, right?"

Lutessa just looked at him in silence. After two seconds, Teague sighed wearily and looked toward the bookcase on his right, where Lena always left a pitcher of water and a glass. The brunette managed to turn her head slowly, just in time to see a glass of water floating towards them.

The glass landed on Miss Mercer's hands ( _Lutessa is alive... She's alive... She's alive_ ), and she left it gently in Lena's hands. "Drink it."

Lena shook her head, shivering so hard she spilled some liquid. Lutessa pressed her lips lightly, taking back the glass of water, and bringing it close to the brunette's lips.

"You need to drink."

Lena wanted to refuse from the bottom of her heart, but she could not find the strength to do so. Instead, she felt the sweat trickle down her back, swallowing her thousands of emotions and taking a big gulp of the water.

She felt her mind clear right away, her eyes finally focusing. And what she saw in front of her was the person who had been stalking them for more than a month. The woman who was the greatest threat to her life and happiness. Her parents' other daughter, Lex's other sister.

Another Luthor trying to kill her.

"Have you always known about me?" Lena asked, saying the first thing that came to her mind.

Lutessa sighed. "Yes and no, I've always known about your existence, but it wasn't until you found your biological family that I knew the truth."

"Quit being so mysterious and tell me the truth."

"The truth is that my mother also lied to me." she smiled wryly. "She told me that the only reason they adopted another child was because people would suspect if the Luthor's baby daughter disappeared overnight, that it was a measure for no one to look for me." Lutessa stared at her, having to leave the glass of water on the floor in absence of a desk. "Of course, I always believed that part of her had wanted to have a real daughter, a complete one. But in my wildest dreams I suspected that the girl who was taking my place was actually the Gap that my mother had to eradicate."

 _Lillian had to kill me._ Lena felt a desire to vomit. _I've lived all my life with a person who had to kill me._

Lutessa looked at her hands. "I suppose anyone who lies to one of their children is also dishonest with the other."

"I don't understand." _I don't understand anything._

"She had to kill you, Lena." Lutessa said very slowly. "She had to kill you and for some selfish reason she let you grow up to become the threat you are now. And the most frustrating thing about all this is that we can't ask her why she did it, because she's in a coma." she bit her lips. "Her selfishness is going to exact a very high price."

Lena felt an overwhelming heat go down from her head to her belly. "Why?" she murmured. "You're alive. What did Diana do that Lillian wanted to ruin the lives of everyone around her?"

"Diana did nothing." Lutessa swallowed. "Our mother considered her as her only real friend, but there's no friendship that's worth sparing, when the safety of millions of people is at stake." she bit her lip. "She really is a good liar."

"Stop beating around the bush!" shouted the brunette, losing her patience. "You don't stop repeating that I'm dangerous! I'm not! I'm a normal person! A normal woman, just a normal businesswoman! You're crazy like the rest of our family!"

"I'm not crazy." she shook her head, her eyes bright. "I'm not as evil as the rest of our family. I hate my job, Lena. Do you think I enjoy being the cause of thousands of little children's deaths per year? I hate it." she snarled. "But someone has to do it. It's for the greater good... thousands of deaths to avoid millions of millions."

Lena felt a violent urge to vomit. "You're crazy." she shivered. "T-Totally crazy, like Lillian, like Lex, like every Luthor who's ever existed."

"Whether we like it or not, you're a Luthor too." Lutessa pursed her lips. "I guess it doesn't matter anymore."

"Lutessa..." _Oh my God. Kara help Kara help me._ "You don't have to do this. Whatever it is, we can fix it. You don't have to kill me."

"Yes I have to, Lena, that's what you're not understanding." she sighed with annoyance. "Veritas's job is to kill people like you: Gaps, the Unique ones, and not only here, but throughout the Multiverse. And you're a Gap, the only one that has survived long enough to become an adult." she looked at her with clenched teeth. "It's been too hard to get here."

"I'm not dangerous..." she murmured. "I'm not dangerous."

Lutessa bit her lip. "Your girlfriend Supergirl has told you about the counterparts of each person on different Earths?"

Lena looked at her with the most absolute horror.

"Yes, we know that Supergirl hides behind the name of Kara Danvers." Lutessa leaned against the back of her wheelchair. "We're not talking about that now, don't get distracted, please."

 _No._ Lena did her best to try to move again, but the invisible force held her as tightly as a brick wall. _No no no no no no._

"All people and Gods have counterparts on other Earths, Lena. It's the way He controls us, creating a pattern that is fulfilled in every living being, characteristics that are fulfilled in each being... Fate, to call it one way." explained Lutessa. "Let's take the example of your girlfriend, Kara Zor-El from here, Earth-38. If we go to the Earth of her friend Flash, we will find that their Kara Zor-El lives there hidden behind the name of Linda Lee Danvers... If we go to Earth-15, we will find Kara Zor-L, better known as Powergirl, who hides under the name Karen Starr, being the personal assistant to the city's most powerful businesswoman, Alexandra Danvers, and living with her adoptive family, the Grants." Lutessa put her fingers together. "You understand what I'm saying? Patterns, details that are repeated in all the counterparts of a person on the different Earths." she stared at her. "Except in the Gaps."

Miraculously, Lena understood every word. "A counterpart of mine escapes the rules of destiny? Is that what you mean?"

"No, Lena. What I'm trying to say is that the Gaps don't have counterparts." she sighed. "No matter what Earth you go to, the only women you'll find as 'Lena Luthor' will be counterparts of mine, deformed and stupid because of their illness. And if you look for 'Lena of Themiscyra' you won't find anyone, because only the Wonder Woman of our Earth has fallen in love and had a daughter. You only exist on this Earth." Lutessa took a deep breath. "And because the Gaps don't have counterparts, they escape His control. And all who escape from the Control of our Creator is sensitive to the influence of the Other."

"Who are you talking about?"

Lutessa bit her lip. "The Amazons dare to call God a Monster, and at the same time, but the Name of God is Mobius, Lena." her eyes shone. "He won the Three Million Year War, defeating and locking up his Sister and creating the Multiverse. Ironically, the Amazons call her Lena, but Her real name is Dax Novu." Lutessa clasped her hands. "And if she seizes a Gap by which to escape her prison, it will be our end. The Apocalypse. The Crisis."

Lena looked at her in silence, as if her soul were out of her body.

"Mom's old book is unreadable and you haven't been able to read it." Lutessa leaned forward. "It's an old version of a Veritas' book, which talks about how Mobius defeated Dax Novu, and the importance of Her confinement. All to avoid the Crisis on Infinite Earths."

* * *

 **Supergirl**

 **5:43 PM**

Supergirl concentrated all her forces on her right fist, throwing a punch into the Tamaranean's stomach. Kara's knee hit her hip, her elbow hit her jaw, and the Tamaranean fell from the sky, spinning in the air like a spinning top, crashing into the roof of a building. Kara flew there and grabbed her fiery red hair, forcing her to look at her.

"Surrender."

"Klupnick... plu... Zolak." said the tamaranean in her language. "Oh X'hal, klupnick plu Zolak!"

"Save your breath, you will speak in the DEO."

The Tamaranean slammed her forehead against hers, screaming in frustration. The violent blow took Kara by surprise, feeling later the alien's burning fist impacting with her face. The scorching heat rushed down her cheek so quickly that Kara did not feel the pain right away.

"KLUPNICK PLU ZOLAK! AAAHHHH!"

The Tamaranean jumped into the air, screaming like a possessed. Kara thought she was going to attack her again, but to her horror the Tamaranean flew towards the Main Street, starting to throwing starbolts randomly. _NO!_

Kara flew after her at full speed, trying to knock her down with her heat vision. But the alien dodged every one of her burning rays, still throwing starbolts at the cars below. The Kryptonian watched as people exited their vehicles and fled, their screams so shrill that Kara could have heard them from another country. _She doesn't want to fight, just destroy!_

"Dammit, stay still!"

Kara had to choose to stop attacking to save people, using her speed to take the cars away from the starbolts. But the Tamaranean began to launch projectiles with both hands at the same time, accelerating even further, so fast that Kara was falling behind.

A starbolt hit a car, exploding into a thousand pieces. Kara heard the screams of the four people inside. _NO! NOO!_

She felt her heart beating more painfully in her chest, her ears being tortured by the cacophony around her. The Tamaranean turned right towards the center of the city, her projectiles of green fire wreaking havoc as she passed. Kara stopped most of them using her cape.

But those that she could not stop, impacted on the people and turned them into living torches, spreading the penetrating scent of burnt flesh like a perfume impossible to erase from her memory.

The Tamaranean finally stopped shooting people, but Kara could not attack her before she started shooting at the buildings. The green fire began to spread with fury, devouring the base of the places that Kara saw every day. _Firefighters will take over, they have to_. She felt a tear hurt her burned cheek. _I have to concentrate on knocking down that bitch before she destroys the rest of the city._

Supergirl managed to catch the orange and purple blot, spinning in an uncontrolled spiral of kicks and blows, traversing the windows of a building with a violent **_BRACK!_**

Kara acknowledged too late that it was CatCo.

Dozens of familiar eyes were staring at them. She had managed to take the Tamaranean by her arms, catching her in mortal embrace.

"Enough!"

"KLUPNICK PLU ZOLAK!"

The alien used all her strength to kick her pelvis, causing Supergirl a stinging pain like a kryptonite stab. She managed to escape her embrace and take two desks in her hands, destroying one on Kara's head and throwing the other at one of the people who was looking at them, before flying out of the window.

Supergirl only had a millisecond to interpose between the desk and the bald man ( _Rao, it's Snapper!_ ), the shattered wood flying all around.

"Everyone get out of here!"

Supergirl flew back after the Tamaranean.

* * *

 **More than a Businesswoman**

 **6:25 PM**

Lena no longer had any desire to look her in the eyes, standing inert as a lifeless body while Jason Teague attached the bomb to her body with gray tape. Lena tried to look for the numbers of the thing, the countdown until the moment she would inevitably die ( _Kara_ ), but could not find anything, just listen to the running of the clock ( _Mother, Mom_ ).

"There is no countdown." Lena said looking at Lutessa's neck.

The other woman spoke slowly. "It's not necessary, there's enough time left to finish our conversation."

"Lutessa..." Lena made the effort to look into her eyes. "There are innocent people here, let them leave the building."

The blue eyes of the woman who could have been her sister shone with contained tears. "I can't."

 _"Lutessa, there are hundreds of people."_

"And millions would die if Veritas is exposed." she bit her lip. "People have to believe that what is going to happen here was a terrorist attack. I can't take the risk."

 _I'm going to die here, in this explosion_. Lena's gaze dropped to something bright on the floor, where one of the faint rays of the sun reflected off a glass surface. The photograph she had taken with her family was a couple of yards away, near the shattered desk. The glow prevented her from seeing the image properly, but she could descry Kara and Alex's form. _The last thing I said to Alex was something that hurt her._

"Do you know what would happen if Dax Novu use a Gap to awaken the Crisis on Infinite Earths?" her fingernails sank into the armrest of her wheelchair. "Imagine any bad sci-fi movie where the whole world is in mortal danger." she sighed loudly. "Now imagine that instead of the world, what is in danger are thousands of worlds, an entire universe." her voice trembled. "And now imagine that instead of a universe, what is in danger are all universes that exist. That every little thing that breathes and moves is in danger of dying... because you're here breathing, Lena." Lutessa took her chin and forced her to look into her eyes, and Lena did not know what was hidden there, in those frozen eyes that seemed to absorb all the heat. "Imagine this is a bad movie. And now tell me, who is the villain?"

She felt her eyes fill with tears. "But as you said before, it's also personal." she could not help a solitary tear falling down her cheek, to the hand of the invalid woman.

Lutessa smiled with infinite sadness. "Can you blame me? You had everything: my parents, my brother, my life, even my name. How can this not to be personal, Lena?" equal tears came down her face. "When I was little... I used to imagine Lillian coming back to fetch me, to take me home. I imagined she would look at you and say 'we no longer need your services, my true daughter is back'." she wiped her own tears. "I hated you all through my childhood. When I grew up I could overcome it, I realized it wasn't your fault that you have taken my place."

"Why did you never go back on your own if you wanted my life so much? I would have happily given it to you."

"Because I was already a member of Veritas, part of the Truth." she released her chin. "To carry out the mission entrusted by the Creator you have to leave behind many things, your feelings, for example, and your scruples as well." Lutessa touched the silver medallion on Lena's neck, caressing the engraving with her thumb. "But someone has to do it."

"What I have on my neck is a Veritas's medallion." _I should have let Maggie keep it. I never told Maggie she's my friend._

"Mobius uses them to talk to us." she released it. "They are linked to His consciousness. You never heard His voice?"

"Not even once."

"I suppose He had nothing to say to a Gap. He can't kill you, because your soul doesn't belong to Him, but to Dax Novu." Lutessa unbuttoned her shirt a little, Lena could see an identical medallion shining on her chest. "Instead, He hasn't stopped talking to me, and what He said was _'If the Gap is not dead before the new moon, I will destroy Earth-15'_." she shivered. "Do you understand, Lena? Do you understand that a whole universe is going to be destroyed if you don't die today? Do you understand the absurdly large number of people who are in danger of extinction because you're alive?"

"Tess, your blood pressure." said Jason quietly.

Lutessa's hand was shaking. She sighed. "And for this reason we kill them when they are still children and don't understand what is happening."

"I think we should go, Tess." Teague sighed, not looking at Lena. "We have to get away from the building."

InGen's CEO looked at him briefly, nodding with her lips tight. The blond man stood up and took the disabled woman's wheelchair. Lena felt that the invisible hand that had held her immobilized until then freed her. She struggled with the tape that attached her to the bomb, as futilely as a fly fighting cobwebs. Lena watched helplessly as Lutessa opened the door.

"Lutessa!"

The woman motioned for Teague to stop.

"What's going to happen to my family?"

She did not answer.

"Lutessa, please." Lena shivered, not caring to sound pathetic. "They haven't done anything, they're not threats. You said yourself that my death will look like a terrorist attack, they don't have to get involved in this."

"...I'm sorry, Lena."

"NO!"

Both went out the door without looking back. Lena was left alone with the sound of the clock running.

"THEY'RE NOT THREATS! DON'T HURT THEM! LUTESSA, COME BACK! **_LUUTESSAAA!_** "

* * *

 **Victim number One: The Friend**

 **6:30 PM**

The Daxamite was thinking of Winn, alone in the alien bar, having a drink and watching the TV, without actually watching. _He hasn't answered the phone all day._ Mon-El sighed deeply _. I hope I didn't ruin our friendship when I confessed my feelings._

He was taking another big sip of alcohol when the news changed.

On television, Supergirl fought an alien in a devastated city, being devoured by fire. The Daxamite spat out half of his drink when he read the headline of the news. _'Destruction in National City.'_

 _Kara. Oh no_. He rose quickly to his feet. _I have to help her, I have to..._ He started running towards the door _. I have to..._ His vision blurred before he touched the doorknob. _I have to..._

Mon-El fell to the floor of the empty bar.

His eyes stuck to the gray ceiling. His throat burned as if he had been drinking fire, his body writhing uncontrollably _. Impossible._ His head turned to the table where he had sat before, where the glass glowed with macabre innocence. _The drink... Lead_. An unbearably painful fire ran through his body. _AaAaAaaAAAAAAAAAHHH! AAAHHHHHHHH!_

Mon-El died alone, on the floor of the empty bar.

* * *

 **Victim number Two: The First Love**

 **6:36 PM**

James Olsen came out of CatCo at full speed, stumbling a bit through the chaos around him. People screamed and ran all over, a scene as dreadful as he had not seen since Clark's fight with Zod six years ago. _My suit_. James pushed his way through the people to his car. _I have to get my suit. Guardian has to help._

He finally got to his car. James Olsen opened the door and sat in the driver's seat. _I'm going to help you, Kara, hold on._ He turned on the engine.

The car exploded, killing him and the twenty people nearest.

* * *

 **Victim number Three: The Mentor, the dearest Friend.**

 **7:09 PM**

Cat Grant drove at full speed, in the opposite direction of the massive fires that were destroying the center of the city. _Damn it_. Carter's school was five minutes away, but that time might well have been a thousand hours for a worried mother. The noise of the cars destroyed her ears, the screams of the people around her did not sound human

 _Everything is being destroyed_. In the sky, Supergirl was fighting with a red and purple stain, from which came the balls of green fire that had begun the destruction. _I have to find Carter. Damn, I should have implanted a chip in his teeth._ The street of Carter's private school was filled with worried parents who had followed the same instinct as she. People crowded into school doors, parents and children shouting names as if they were playing Marco Polo. Cat left the car on the sidewalk, finding no place to park. She jumped out of it and ran to the school. "Carter!"

The Media Mogul fought to get to the door of the school, doing everything possible not to be dragged by the larger people. _Damn damn damn damn_. Her eyes widened as much as possible, trying to find Carter in that human tide. _A football uniform, an orange uniform._ Cat pushed a man and entered the school, looking in the corridors for the orange color and a head with curls of honey.

Carter and his teammates were in the midst of the disaster, disoriented as they watched their coach, who was yelling hysterically through a cellphone in his ear.

"Carter!"

He saw her and his face lost all color. "M-Mom?"

Cat took her son's hand and began to advance toward the exit. "Come on, Carter, we have to get out of here immediately!"

"M-Mom, no!" the teenager tried to break free from Cat's grip. "Vice Principal Palmier said we have to stay inside! We're safer inside!"

"Where's that woman!?"

"I-I don't know."

"I don't care what she said, Carter, you and I are leaving now. I have to take you somewhere safe."

Cat did not allow her son to argue and forced him to walk quickly toward the exit of the school, pushing with all the force her small frame could manage. _I should have been interested in boxing and not yoga_. The honey-haired woman managed to get outside, down the stairs and across the street, her hand holding her son's. She opened her car and they both jumped inside.

"Where are we going?" stammered Carter.

Cat started the car. "Your grandmother always insisted on building a panic room in-"

 ** _*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!*_**

 _*'AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!'*_

Cat watched with horror as Carter's school exploded fifty yards away, almost twenty seconds after they had left it. Her son began to tremble uncontrollably.

 _Help._

* * *

 **The head of Hellenders**

 **7:12 PM**

Raven Roth dropped the book in her hands as she read the words on the television. _'Destruction in National City'._ On it, Supergirl was fighting a Tamaranean that was burning the entire city. She saw her mother take off her reading glasses, rising from the couch.

"Rachy..."

"It's a Tamaranean." said Raven in disbelief. "Can't be..."

Angela Roth looked at her in disbelief. "I thought the Tamaraneans weren't hostile."

"I guess not everyone can be like Wildfi-."

Said Tamaranean entered through the door, breaking it in the process. The young boy looked at the leader of Hellenders with horror painted on his orange face. "We have to go to National City now!"

"You came fast, Wildfire." Raven pointed to the television. "Is she a friend of yours?"

"No!" The Tamaranean looked at them both. "She's my older sister!"

* * *

 **Supergirl**

 **7:15 PM**

"STOOOP NOOOOW!"

Supergirl ripped a huge iron antenna off the top of what was left of a building. She used it as a bat to reach the Tamaranean, hitting her on the head and crashing her into another building.

"YOU'VE DESTROYED IT ALL!"

Overcome by rage, Supergirl lunged at the fallen Tamaranean and began to hit her in the face with all the strength she could muster in her fists. "PLACES!" **_Pam_** "HOMES!" **_Pam Pam_**. "LIVES!" **_PAM!_** the Tamaranean lost two teeth, staring at her with eyes empty of hope. "WHY YOU DID THIS!? WHY!?"

"Klupnick... Plu... Zalik..." the Tamaranean began to sob uncontrollably. "Zy X'hal... Klupnick plu Zalik, klupnick akem."

"STOP!" screamed Supergirl full of fury. "I don't speak your language!" her eyes glittered in white, preparing her heat vision to melt the Tamaranean's head. "And after what you've done, I can't let you live. You're too dangerous."

With her last strength, the alien pushed her head forward and joined her lips to Kara's in a deep kiss. _But what the...?_ She jerked her away with a punch, listening to the alien's head creaking. Then she took her neck and began to squeeze tightly. "You're crazy."

Tears dripped down her cheeks. "Save the... Princess."

 _What?_ Supergirl released her. The Tamaranean began to cough blood, splashing both of them. "What the hell did you say?"

"Save the... Princess." she sobbed. "It's a trap. Save the Princess." she looked at her with desperate eyes. "SAVE THE PRINCESS! THEY WILL KILL HER! _SAVE HER NOW!_ "

Supergirl released the alien and stood up frantically, ignoring all her fatigue as if she had been struck by lightning. She jumped into the air, flying in the direction of L-Corp _. Lena._ Her heart was beating so fast that Kara could only hear a buzzing, an agonizing sound running through her body like poison in her blood. _LENA!_

She was halfway there when she heard the first explosion, followed by the horrible screams of hundreds of people. Kara turned her head and her eyes widened in painful disbelief as she recognized the building that had just exploded. _Carter's School._

 ** _*BOOOOOOOOOM*_** _No, please no._ Kara turned her head. _James's house._

 ** _*BOOOOOOOOOM*_** _Noonan's_

 ** _*BOOOOOOOOOM* *BOOOOOOOOOM*_** _Winn's department. M'gann's building._

The explosions continued being produced around her, so fast that Kara's mind had gone blank. She could hear them all, every beautiful light that was a person in National City screaming in pain and going off forever.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"

Kara screamed until her throat ached, until her eyes were about to melt themselves. The screams kept coming to her, hundreds of people calling her, begging for help.

"AAAAHHHHHHHHH!"

 ** _(A world consumed by the selfishness of its inhabitants, exploding into a thousand pieces as she moved away in a pod. A red sun still shining, shining, Rao shining indifferently.)_**

 _*'SUPERGIRL!' 'HELP!' ' HELP US!' 'SUPERGIRL!'*_

Kara's heart broke into a thousand pieces. _I'm sorry._

She continued flying to L-Corp.

* * *

 **The Gap**

 **7:30 PM**

Lena closed her eyes and remembered.

 _She is looking for her favorite dragon toy, entering the dining room to find Lionel drunk on the couch, his face red and swollen and his cheeks full of tears. The man looks at her and bites his lip. "It's all your fault."_

 _Lena starts to move back._

 _"It's all your fault! Damn the day Lillian brought you here, your pathetic excuse for intelligent life! Why did we have to adopt you!?" he covers his face with his hand. "You're not... You're not... my daughter."_

 _"D-Daddy..."_

 _"Didnt you hear me!? YOU'RE NOT MY DAUGHTER! DISAPPEAR FROM MY SIGHT, YOU IDIOT"_

 _She runs to the garden, taking refuge under the tree, crying with her face hidden on her knees. And then, hurried steps toward her._

 _"Lena!" Lex kneels beside her. "Lena, don't cry, come on. You know you shouldn't pay attention to him. He didn't mean it."_

 _"L-Lex ..."_

 _"Come on, Lena. Dad was just very angry and you showed up at a bad time. He didn't mean it. I promise."_

 _"Nobody loves me."_

 _"That's a lie, don't say it again. I love you. You're my little sister and I'll always love you."_

 _"Promise me, Lex?"_

 _"I promise."_

She felt tears stream down her cheeks as the next memory came to her mind.

 _She hadn't gone on their second date. Instead, she is on the sofa in her new home, trying to see her own fingers after her umpteenth glass of whiskey mixed with wine._

 _"Lena?" Kara knocks on the door of her apartment. "Lena, are you there?"_

 _(No, don't enter here, you deserve better) Lena tries to say it, but the words don't come out of her mouth._

 _"Lena, I'm going to force the door, okay?"_

 _Surprisingly, Kara must be stronger than she seems, because a second later her door creaks and the blonde's beautiful face appears before her eyes. "Lena?"_

 _She tries to leave the glass on the tea table. "You shouldn't have come."_

 _"Lena, what is this? Are you drunk again?" she kneels in front of her, her blue eyes shining. "Lena, this isn't good! You've had enough! Why you do this? Why do you hurt yourself?" her voice softens a little. "You have to stop, do you understand? I can help." she caresses her shoulders. "Lena, I really like you, and I think I'm falling in love with you. That's why I have to stop you." Kara wraps her in a hug. "We can fix this, I swear we can fix it, but you have to help me to help you. You're wonderful, Lena, you don't deserve to destroy your life like this. Please help me to help you."_

"Kara..." Lena felt the taste of blood as she bit her lip. "I just want to see you one more time, Kara."

 _Diana opens the door to the room. There is a double bed with white sheets, two light tables with orange lamps, a cupboard on the right and the obligatory window with balcony in front of her._

 _"You can use this room anytime you want, Lena." her blue eyes glitter, hidden behind the antiquated glasses. "Just in case you want to spend the night here sometime."_

 _The CEO smiles, her heart feeling light. "I love it, Diana."_

 _The Amazon smiles, caressing her shoulder. "I think Kara will like the balcony. Do you think-?"_

 _*'HAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!'* a hysterical laugh interrupts Diana._

 _They both look at each other in confusion, leaving the room immediately and crossing the hallway. In the kitchen, Kara is showing the screen of her cellphone to Artemis, who is laughing wildly with her hands on her belly. "Oh Ishtar... Isis... Nut... I haven't laughed so much in years."_

 _"Missy?"_

 _"Di, did you know you almost had your own TV show in 2011?"_

 _"What?" Diana takes Kara's phone, who makes futile efforts to contain her own laughter. "Oh my… 'Wonder Woman: never aired television pilot produced by Warner Bros, with Adrianne Palicki as Diana Themiscyra'... What?" Diana continues reading. "The show was going to follow the adventures of Wonder Woman in Hollywood. Wonder Woman, whose alter ego is Diana Themiscyra, CEO of Themiscyra Industries, has trouble balancing her life as both CEO and Hero, forcing her to create a third identity, where she can have the normal life she wants, and sit at home with her cat watching romantic comedies and surfing the Internet... Τι στο διάολο!?"_

 _Lena starts laughing almost as hysterically as the redhead._

 _"Lena, Missy, stop laughing! You should be supporting me, not laughing at my disgrace! And don't think I can't see you holding your laugh, Kara!"_

Lena began to shudder, but she was crying rather than laughing. _I knew it_. Her tears fell on the bomb. _It was too good to last._

 ** _Calm down_**

Lena looked up, trying to see where the voice had come from. "Who's there?" _I've gone crazy_. "Who's there!?"

 ** _Calm down_**

The medallion was burning on her chest. Lena lost all the air in her lungs. "You're the thing Lutessa said wanted me dead."

 ** _I am not Mobius, Gap_**. The voice said serenely. **_I am Dax Novu._**

"Leave me alone." Lena gasped. "I'm not a Gap. I'm not dangerous. I'm just a fucking businesswo-"

Lena felt the electricity run through her body before falling unconscious.

Five seconds later, the bomb exploded.

 ** _*BOOOOOOOOOOOOM*_**

* * *

 **The Woman who Runs**

 **7:40 PM**

She tugged on her son's arm as they continued running down the street.

"Quick, Carter! We have to..."

 ** _*BOOOOOOOOOOOM!*_**

In the distance, L-Corp exploded as if a meteorite had hit its center, producing a racket as big as if it had come out of hell itself. Cat stumbled and got up immediately. Carter moaned as if someone had hit him.

The building began to collapse like a giant disintegrating.

 _No_

* * *

 **The Truth**

 **7:40 PM**

 ** _*BOOOOOOOOOOOOM*_**

Lutessa watched L-Corp explode with a sound she knew would be in her nightmares for a long time ( _'Innocent lives, Lutessa!'_ ). The building began to collapse, to break into a thousand pieces as if a huge child had kicked a toy. _My father made that company with his own hands_. Tess Mercer sobbed, feeling the warm tears stream down her cheeks.

She felt Jason's hand tighten a little on her shoulder. "Remember we saved all of Earth-15."

"It's all I do, Jason."

They both saw Supergirl floating in the air, staring incredulously at the disaster.

"The giant screen that is in the middle of the city hasn't suffered damage, has it?"

"I programmed Starfire to avoid it." replied the blond man.

"Then prepare the video, we're almost done."

* * *

 **The girl who arrived too late**

 **7:40 PM**

 ** _*BOOOOOOOOOOOOM*_**

Kara had arrived too late.

She was only forty yards from L-Corp, preparing to break a window and look for the bomb. She was going to do it. She was going to get the bomb and save the people inside, to save Lena.

But she did not arrive on time and did not.

 _No_

The building began to collapse like a house of cards, black smoke hindering her vision.

Supergirl convulsed like someone dying, taking her hand to her mouth to contain the desperate cry that threatened to break her down the middle.

 ** _('I know you've lived a thousand years in one life, Kara'_**

 ** _'You're my home; the only reward I want. I don't want any thing else. I only want you'._**

 ** _'To be super super! To be super super girl!'_**

 ** _'I should create kryptonite handcuffs. I bet you'd like that, wouldn't you, you naughty Puppy?')_**

"LEEEEENAAAAAAA!"

Kara reacted, pouncing into what remained of the building, her eyes filling with the black smoke that escaped from the rubble. Her hands found a huge piece of concrete, which she took in her arms and threw away without a second thought. "LENA!" The smoke still clouded her vision. "LEENA! LEENAA!" Kara used her x-ray vision, trying to see something in the colossal disaster that had previously been L-Corp. None of the human bodies under it had vital signs. "Please... Please..." she fell on top of the rubble. "Lena... L-Le-Lena..."

 ** _Look up_**

Kara turned her head frantically left and right, trying to see the person who had said that.

 ** _Up_**

She looked up, where the orange sky was turning black. She could not see it at first, but after two seconds her super vision saw the black spot floating above, as if the air of National City had turned into water and it were a floating log. Kara jumped into the air and rose quickly, her throat losing all the air as she approached the black spot. _Can't be..._

Lena was floating in the air, her eyes closed and her hair flying around her. The Kryptonian did not realize that her own mouth was open with astonishment, her eyes full of tears about to explode in amazement.

"L-Lena?"

Kara checked her vital signs. She was not hurt at all, she was just asleep. Her surprise and relief mingled with fear, a fear so fierce that Kara thought for a moment that it was all a nightmare. "Lena, can you hear me? Potsticker?" Kara tried to touch her. "AAY!" but her body was burning as if it were a small sun.

* * *

 **The woman who failed**

 **7:43 PM**

"NOOO!" Lutessa shuddered so violently that she fell from her wheelchair. "NO! NOOOO!"

"Tess!" Jason tried to lift her off the floor.

The shocked woman roared with rage. "WE HAVE BEEN DECEIVED!"

"Lut-"

"MOBIUS IS NOT IN THAT MEDALLION!" shouted the woman. "Play the video! PLAY IT NOW!"

Jason hastened to obey her. Lutessa tugged at her hair, ripping out a full strand. "Earth-15..." tears fell from her eyes. "Earth-15... N-No... No..."

 _A whole universe dead because I failed._

* * *

 **The girl who can't believe what she's seeing**

 **7:44 PM**

Supergirl removed her red cape, wrapping her girlfriend's floating body carefully so she could hold it. "Lena, can you hear me?" Kara wrapped her arms around her waist. "I'm here, Potsticker. I have you, I have you."

A white light flashed on the huge screen of the building in front of her, one of the few surviving buildings. _W-What... What's going on?_ In the distance, she saw other smaller screens in the rest of the city, all shining in white. _What is this?_

Her relaxed face appeared on the screen. _* '...Is the camera on, Winn?... Yeah, I know I shouldn't say your name. Just delete it later.' *_

"No..."

 ** _* 'Her name is Kara Zor-El' *_** said an unknown voice in the video. **_* 'When she was a child, her planet Krypton was dying. She was sent to Earth to protect her cousin. But her pod got knocked off-course and by the time she got here, her cousin had already grown up and become... Superman. She hid who she really was until one day, when an accident forced her to reveal herself to the world. To most people, she's a reporter at CatCo Worldwide Media. But in secret, she works with her adoptive sister for the D.E.O to protect her city from alien life and anyone else that means to cause it harm. She's Supergirl. '*_**

 _*"And cut, Winn! Do you think it went well? I hope Lena likes it... Oh by Rao, look what time it is! I have a very important interview in an hour!' *_

 ** _* 'She's Kara Danvers.' *_**

 _No_

 _No no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no._

Kara almost let go of Lena's unconscious body.

 ** _"NOOOOOOOOO!"_**

* * *

 **The astonished journalist**

 **7:46 PM**

 ** _*'She's Kara Danvers.'*_**

Everyone around the reporter opened their mouths in disbelief. Lucas continued to stare at the screen through the broken window. "Ponytail..."

* * *

 **The unbelieving child**

 **7:46 PM**

 ** _*'She's Kara Danvers.'*_**

 _What? It's impossible..._

Around Carter, the rest of the people stared at the screen in disbelief, murmuring like ghosts in purgatory.

"Mom, tell me that's a lie... Mom?" Cat was staring at the screen, shivering slightly and her eyes shining with tears. She seemed not to have even heard him. "Mom, do you hear me? Mom!"

* * *

 **Her name is Kara Zor-El**

 **7:49 PM**

Kara looked down, where millions of tiny people like ants stared at her in disbelief. Lena's weight in her arms felt like that of Fort Rozz itself. She gagged a couple of times, and if she did not vomit it was only because her stomach was empty.

People on the floor pointed at her with their index fingers.

"No..." she shivered uncontrollably. "No... No... N-No..." Lena's face was getting wet with her tears. "No."

Kara Zor-El tightened her grip on her girlfriend and flew out of National City, her eyes receiving the last ray of sunlight of that day like a blasphemy. It was red like Krypton's, red as a bloodbath.

* * *

 _The Hope will see her world fall apart again (...)_

 _The Gap will face the Truth, causing the metallic giant to fall._

* * *

 **The missing Amazon**

 **8:19 PM**

Artemis awoke in a room that was too bright, with a pain in her chest slightly less intense than that of giving birth. Her ears buzzed painfully, the sound of her own moans sounding deafening. Her body felt as weak as if a whole Temple had collapsed on her. _That filthy little traitor_. The light hurt her closed eyelids. _Diana. Alex and Sawyer. I have to..._ She tried to open them. _I have to find them._ She tried to move her arms, but she could not.

Using her willpower, she opened her eyes, receiving rays of light so bright that she was about to close them again. Everything was white around her, like the famous snow she had never seen. _Where am I?_ As much as she tried to focus her eyes, everything was just blurry around her. And it did not help the fact that her wrists seemed to be tied to some kind of surface.

"Artemis." said a male voice.

"Who...?" she tried to speak. "Who's there?"

"J'onn."

"Martian?"

With effort, she turned her head to the right, where a horizontal blur of dark colors was a short distance from her. As her pupils finally adjusted to the light, she saw J'onn's body lying on a stretcher, his arms and legs caught in strange, bright red handcuffs.

"J'onn." she tried to move again, but discovered with horror that she was on a similar stretcher. "Martian, what's going on? Where are we?"

"I don't know." replied the Martian, a drop of sweat falling down his cheek. "Someone certainly kidnapped us. I woke up an hour ago and your body was next to mine."

"We have to get out of here, Martian." Artemis tried to struggle with her handcuffs, but it was like struggling with a ton of steel. "Alex, Diana and Maggie are in danger. We have to get out of here."

"What happened?"

"There's more than one traitor." she gasped. "And none of them are Banas." _I owe Akila an apology._

 ** _*Tam*_**

Artemis heard the sound of a door opening, and then the pitter-patter of heels against the floor. The redhead saw an old face appear before her eyes, a woman who should be at least eighty, smiling with sharp teeth. "You should stop moving so much, darling. You don't want the wound in your chest to open again, do you? I don't think anyone here wants that."

Artemis looked at her with a mixture of disbelief and anger. "I give you three seconds to let us go and I won't kill you."

"Artemis." J'onn kept his calm, looking at the old woman coldly. "Who are you and what do you want?"

"Oh, it's not about what I want." the woman immediately responded. "But what Veritas needs, and Veritas's need is a worldwide need, darling." she laughed shortly. "You can call me Granny Goodness, or Palmier if you prefer. None of them are my name anyway."

"I think I understand." Artemis said slowly. "It seems that we have fallen into some sort of religious sect, Martian. You know, the typical madmen who believe that only they know the secret of the world and what is best for it." Ignoring the pain in her chest, the Amazon snarled. "I don't care what your excuse is, Bag of Rottenness. History has already made it clear to anyone what happens to those who have tried to kill an Amazon."

The old woman sighed and shrugged. "You surely will be a challenge." she said quietly. "But it's okay, I like challenges. And just to make it clear, I'm not going to kill either of you. Veritas has plans for both of you, but for that, I have to destroy you first."

* * *

 **The last daughter of Krypton**

 **8:32 PM**

Kara was not able to formulate any coherent thoughts all the way to the Fortress of Solitude, her arms holding Lena's body as if it were the only thing that tied her to reality. The cold of the North Pole was pouring all over her body without her cape, but Kara was grateful for that fact, because the cold made her aware that nothing of what had happened had been a nightmare.

No matter how much she wished it were.

 _All my life._

 _All my life destroyed in less than two hours._

The far dot that was the Fortress of Solitude began to grow larger as Kara approached with effort, feeling the heat radiate from the inert body of her girlfriend. _I have to help her._

At the door, Kara had to leave Lena on the snowy ground to be able to lift the dwarf star key, which felt much heavier than normal. _I'm too weak **. "RAO'S... SHIT!"**_ Kara screamed in frustration, using the last of her strength to open the door.

 ** _*Prum*_**

She then collapsed on the floor, with her eyes fixed on Lara Van-El's solemn face. The thick sound of her breathing was utterly deafening. "K-Kelex."

The robot appeared flying over her face. **_"Kara Zor-El?"_**

"Take Lena to the infirmary now." she panted, the pain spreading all over her body, like poison. Kara tried to get up, but discovered with horror that she could not even turn her head. "Kelex" she whispered.

The robot emitted a beep when he picked up Lena's body from the snowy floor ** _. "Kara Zor-El?"_**

"Contact J'onn."

 ** _'The subject J'onn J'onnz is not within Kelex's reach at this time._** ' Kelex entered the Fortress again.

"Contact Winn."

 ** _'The subject Winslow Schott Jr is not within Kelex's reach at this time.'_**

"Call Alex, you damn piece of garbage."

 ** _'The subject Alexandra Jan Danvers is not within Kelex's reach at this time.'_**

"Try again, she has... she has her cellphone." the darkness was beginning to cloud her vision.

 ** _'Alexandra Jan Danvers's cell phone is out of order.'_**

 _There has to be a mistake._ Kara crawled into the Fortress. _She's in Themiscyra._

"Look for her... by satellite."

 ** _'Alexandra Jan Danvers was not found.'_**

"Look for her heartbeat." _Alex, oh please, where are you sister?_ "Find her... heartbeat."

 ** _'Alexandra Jan Danvers's heartbeat has not been found.'_**

 _He has to be broken._ "Find Eliza Danvers's heartbeat."

 ** _'Eliza Danvers's heartbeat is on Route 67, Minnesota.'_**

 _Eliza is fleeing_. "Find Alex's."

 ** _'Alexandra Jan Danvers's heartbeat has not been found.'_**

"Again."

 ** _'Alexandra Jan Danvers's heartbeat has not been found.'_**

Kara felt herself slipping out of consciousness. "A-Again."

 ** _'Alexandra Jan Danvers's heartbeat has not been found.'_**

Kara fainted at the foot of the statue of Jor-El.

 ** _'Alexandra Jan Danvers's heartbeat has not been found.'_**

 ** _'Alexandra Jan Danvers's heartbeat has not been found.'_**

 ** _'Alexandra Jan Danvers's heartbeat has not been found.'_**

 ** _'Alexandra Jan Danvers's heartbeat has not been found.'_**

* * *

 **Notes:**

 **Τι στο διάολο: What the Fuck!?**  
 **Lutessa Lena Luthor and Jason Teague belongs to Smallville.**  
 **Hellenders, Raven (Rachel) Roth, Angela Roth, and Wildfire belongs to DC Comics (Teen Titans)**  
 **Granny Goodness belongs to DC Comics.**  
 **Dax Novu and Mobius belongs to DC Comics, the Monitor and Anti-Monitor (Crisis on Infinite Earts, 1985)**  
 **Well, the cards are on the table. This is what I had planned all this time: a version of Crisis on Infinite Earths with my favorite characters and couples as protagonists (and a better participation of Supergirl instead of just saving Superman, the veterans who have read Crisis on Infinite Earths know of what I'm speaking).**  
 **Good night everyone**


	30. Thousand Faces

**Soundtrack I used; Star Sky (Two Steps from Hell… I know, bad name, but the song is beautiful)  
...Um, beware: Blood**

* * *

 **The Traitor**

 **1988**

Alkyone felt the heat forming drops of sweat on her bald head, staring at a blonde Bana who was telling tales to the little children around the bonfire. Once again, the children's faces glowed with excitement before 'Lena and the Great Monster'.

From time to time, the mothers of some of the girls stroked their heads.

Alkyone felt her hand tighten on the hilt of her sword.

She walked in silence, moving as far away from the party as possible, wrapping herself in the shadows of the night. The small houses of Bana-Mighdall were very different from the beautiful architecture of Themiscyra, but nevertheless they all looked more cheerful than those that Alkyone had seen in a long time.

Her chest fluttered. _I would kill every last one of these street rats with my own hands._

She kept walking until she reached the east wall, guarded by a young Bana who seemed to never have used a brush in her life. Alkyone reached into her cloak and pulled out a piece of roast meat, doing her best to be loud enough.

As she predicted, the Bana noticed her presence. "Hey, you! Themy! What's that you have there?"

Alkyone raised an eyebrow. "It's just a piece of lamb. I took one before they ran out, everyone is hungry." She took a bite of the piece of meat.

The young Bana pursed her lips. "Is there lamb there?"

"And chicken." Alkyone shrugged. "And I think goat cheese too. It's not very good, on Themiscyra we make it better."

To her delight, a grimace of anger appeared on her face. "I bet you guys have a lot of free time to invent cooking recipes."

 _Rat._ "I think I'll go back to the party."

"No, wait!" shouted the Bana, biting her lips. "I've been doing my duty all night..."

"Do you want me to take your place for a few minutes?" Alkyone asked, trying to sound friendly.

"I-It's not that I need it." she blushed, Alkyone could see it despite the darkness. "But you're not doing anything productive and..."

"Run away before I change my mind, girl."

The Bana quickly descended the stairs with the agility of youth. She started to run toward the city without looking at Alkyone twice. _Rats, all of them_. Alkyone climbed the stairs, climbing to the top of the wall immediately, finishing eating the meat.

The bald Amazon breathed deeply, watching the desert landscape in front of her. The mountains rose majestically, natural giants where any enemy could hide. Alkyone whistled a song in the silence of the night, an ancient melody that someone had taught her. She did not remember who.

First it was a dot in the distance, a tiny dark spot which was advancing slowly, immersing itself in the landscape. Alkyone rubbed her hands impatiently, then reached for the rope she had hidden in her cloak. Her heart began to beat rapidly, almost painfully. She looked up again. The stain was getting bigger. _Hurry up, by the Gods_. Alkyone took a deep breath, trying to control her heartbeat. She counted down to ten, and slid the end of the rope through the wall. The stain finally took the form of a person, hurrying closer to the wall, closer, closer...

Alkyone felt a tug on the rope, and the movement of a person climbing with effort. Twenty-five seconds later ( _how slow she is_ ) the hooded figure poked her head through the wall. She took her hand and helped her finish climbing. The person staggered a little, and took off her hood.

Lillian brushed her blond hair out of her face.

Alkyone looked her up and down. "Do you know where the Temple of Isis is?"

"Of course." Lillian wasted no time and started down the stairs. "I'm not stupid, I thought that was already clear."

"Luthor." Alkyone stopped her halfway. The blond woman looked at her, her blue eyes glowing like bonfires. "Kill her painfully."

"It has to look like she drowned accidentally."

"Then drown her slowly."

* * *

 **Diana of Nowhere**

 **6:02 PM**

When Diana regained consciousness, the first thing she felt was dreadful heat running through her veins, as if they had replaced her blood with gasoline. She bit her lip to contain the pain. The stab in her womb would have been tolerable had it not been for the venom that ran through her body, turning even the simple act of opening her eyes into a battle.

Diana found herself tied to a wall in a painfully lit room. The first thing she saw was something so absurd that for a moment she thought she was having hallucinations ( _a photocopier?_ ), but the voices of her captors convinced her otherwise.

"She's waking up." said Myrto's voice.

Painfully, Diana turned her head a little, meeting the indolent looks of Myrto and Charis. _Traitors._ Her chest convulsed in a deadly mixture of hysteria and hate. _Traitors. Traitors_. She tried to struggle with her chains, but the metal did not budge an inch. The four ex-Royal guards remained silent.

"Trai..." Diana felt so much pain that she could not speak. "Trai..."

Philomela folded her arms. "Come on, keep talking and you'll die faster."

"Not enough." Alkyone advanced a little. "We still have to talk with her."

"I think she's confused by the photocopy machine." Myrto narrowed her eyes. "We used it to photocopy the information that your foreign friends had in their luggage. We returned the original to its place and made sure the Banas found the copies."

"Those savages chose a bad day to be merciful."

Diana stared at the bald woman. "My m-m..."

"You will meet her in the Underworld." Alkyone took her chin. "And your street rat too. And the three of you will wait a couple of hours for your foreign friends."

Diana grunted, aching in her heart. "W-Why?"

Alkyone released her. "You wouldn't understand." she said slowly. "Even if another thousand years passed."

"Ask her about the Dagger." said Charis.

Alkyone leaned forward a little, so she could meet her eyes. "Where is the Dagger of Hades?"

Diana snarled at her.

"You have to know that your foreign friends are still alive. I'll make Charis go kill them right now if you don't tell me where it is."

Diana heard the distant voice of her mother, a voice begging her not to speak. _'I saw Antiope killing a Cyclops with a single stab from The Dagger of Hades. In wrong hands, this could kill a God, or something worse_ ', but she also imagined Maggie and Alex's faces, trapped who knows where.

Diana tried to gather all her strength. "We're... going to... kill..."

"You and who else?" Asked Charis, raising an eyebrow.

"My... mo... "

"I thought I was clear enough." Alkyone sighed. "Your mother is already dead, Princess."

Diana felt her heart break into a thousand pieces. _No._ Her face convulsed _. It's not true, none of this is true. My mother can't be dead, no..._

 ** _(An arm embraces her after a bad dream. A soothing voice tells her that everything is fine, that she is much stronger than anything that tries to hurt her.)_**

"Art... mis..."

Myrto crossed her arms. "Your Bana died trying to save her apprentice."

"Lie."

"I was there when Io made a hole in her chest with an arrow. I would have expected it to be more difficult."

Diana let out a laugh. "Io? She's my... friend." _That's absurd._

Alkyone clenched her fists impatiently. "How can you be so blind, Diana? You don't have friends, your whole family is dead or about to die; all you can do is give your friends a quick, painless death instead of letting them die tortured."

"THEYR... NO... DEAD..."

"She's getting weaker." Myrto said with a sigh. "We should stop the bleeding if we want her to guide us to the Dagger. We should have stayed with the Bana."

Philomela shook her head, her empty sockets blacker than the darkness itself. "The Queen hated her, she would never have told her where the Dagger is. She's much better off the map."

Diana wanted to shout at them to stop talking about her wife as if she were dead. _You don't deceive me._ She growled and an excruciating pain ran through her throat. _Missy can't be dead. You're lying._

 ** _(Green eyes shine with mischief and amusement. Slightly rough hands touch her hair, playful lips kiss her neck.)_**

 _I refuse to believe it. She must be protecting Lena._

"Stop the bleeding enough for her to survive a few more hours." ordered Alkyone. "She will show us the way to the Dagger."

* * *

 **Mad Danvers**

 **6:23 PM**

"AAAAAHHHHHHH!"

Alex fought against a sinister shadow, using all her strength to take her bedside table and throw it against it **_*BAMB*._** Her room was a battlefield, her enemies surrounded her, threatening to attack all her loved ones.

 _'ALEEEEX!'_

"KARAA!" Alex fell back and hit her back against the headboard. The pain spread through her injured back. "KARAA!"

 _'Daughter...'_

"MOM!" Alex punched a sinister shadow.

 _'Alex!'_

"J'onn, I'm going to help you! I'm coming!"

 _'Alexandra...'_

"Artemis..." Alex dropped to her knees, tears falling from her eyes. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry... It was my fault..."

 _'I'm sorry to tell you that you're right, babe...'_

Alex lay down on the floor, watching the ceiling of the room. The shadows fell on her without her doing anything to stop them. _I've gone crazy._

Then she had no reason to restrain herself.

"OOOPEEEEEN!" Alex jumped to her feet, running toward the door of the room, kicking and pounding with all her force. "OPEN THE DOOR, YOU FUCKING SLUTS! I'LL KILL YOU ALL! THERE WON'T BE ONE OF YOU ALIVE, TRAITORS FUCKERS!"

 _"Do you think she has already gone crazy?"_

 _"She's always been crazy, Trigona, after all the Bana was her friend."_

Alex sobbed and slammed her fist so hard her bones creaked.

"I'm going to kill you..."

 _'You'll have to work harder.'_ a voice answered at her side.

Alex stepped back in surprise, her eyes painfully open. Beside her, a dark-haired young woman with black paint on her face looked at her with her arms folded.

"Can't be!" Alex croaked. "You're dead! That stupid stray bullet killed you!"

 _'Of course I'm dead.'_ Lexa rolled her eyes. _'I'm a creation of your subconscious. You're about to go crazy because of that thing you drank, so you shouldn't be so surprised to see me here.'_

Alex pulled her hair. "I'm crazy..."

 _'And soon you'll be dead if you don't find a way to get out of here.'_ Lexa sat on the bed. _'Maybe I could help you out, I know many strategies as Commander.'_

"You're not here."

 _'Come on, stop whining and get up!'_ shouted Lexa. _'You have to take revenge for Artemis! You have to save Maggie and Diana! You have to find Kara! Come on, rise up!'_

Alex obeyed, sighing agitatedly.

"I need to get out of here... "

 _'First you need a weapon.'_ Lexa said, pursing her lips. _'Those bitches took your gun, but anything can be a weapon in an extreme situation. Look for something that might be useful.'_

Alex looked around at the room, to where the shadows had temporarily withdrawn. There wasn't much, the Amazons had taken their luggage, and there was nothing that could be a weapon in...

 _'What were you doing this morning?'_ asked Lexa seriously.

Alex blinked a couple of times.

 _'Remember: you were wounded by the Banas.'_ Lexa sighed. ' _What did you do?'_

"I... I applied myself a bandage from my first-aid kit."

 _'Did you put the kit back in your luggage?'_

"I don't think so, Commander. I don't think so."

 _'Very good.'_ Lexa stood in front of her, Alex saw rage in her green eyes. _'Where were you when you applied the bandage?'_

"I don't... I don't remember."

 _'Think Alex, try to remember.'_

"I don't know!"

 _'Strive harder or I'll bring SpongeBob!'_ Lexa pushed her, but strangely Alex did not feel anything. _'Where's your first aid kit, Alex Danvers?'_

Alex tried to force her tortured mind to focus on the first aid kit, just on the first aid kit. _I had finished eating the traitor who brought me that cake, no, the cake that traitor brought me... And I looked for my first aid kit... and..._

"I was sitting on the bed."

 _'Alright.'_ When Alex saw Lexa again, she had orange hair _. 'If you didn't put it in your luggage, then it must be here.'_

Alex pounced on the bed.

 _'Inside there's a scalpel, look for it.'_

She threw the sheets and pillows to the floor, lifting the mattress, and finally checking under the bed, finding the little white box. _Idiot, you should have searched there first._

 _'You said it, not me.'_

"Shut up Lexa!"

 _'Don't talk like that to your Commander!'_

Alex frantically opened the first aid kit, ignoring the gauze, the intravenous, the needles and the small package of serum. She found two small scalpels, taking one and leaving the other. Swallowing hard, Alex closed the first aid kit and put it in her pocket.

 _'You'll have to be quick if you want to kill them with that.'_ said Lexa, looking at the little scalpel.

"I have to get out of here first."

 _'Kick the lock.'_ Lexa stood by the door. _'You're in your room, not in a cell. If you use all your strength you may have a chance.'_

Alex prepared her arms, her legs and her feet, trying to harden to the last muscle of her wounded body. _Do I have an opportunity against two Amazons?_

 _'Probably not.'_ Lexa shook her head _. 'You may need some help.'_

Alex looked at her in confusion. "You can't fight, Commander, you're not here."

 _'And you're not sane.'_ Lexa rolled her eyes. _'Check the pocket of your pants.'_

Alex sighed and slid her hand into her pocket, feeling the smooth texture of the small yellow bottle Io had given her. Alex grunted in fury and threw it against the wall.

"FUCKING DISGUSTING RAT! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU FOR WHAT YOU DID TO ARTEMIS, IO THE BLACKFUCKER!"

 _"Morpheus's grapes have never turned someone so violent."_

 _"The girl was a Bana's friend, of course she's a savage too."_

"YOU COME FIRST, BASTARDS!"

 _'Hey!'_ Lexa stood in front of her. _'I understand that you have gone crazy and all that, but if you don't calm down you won't be able to get out of here.'_

Alex shook a couple of times, staring at Lexa without blinking, nodding.

 _'The other pocket.'_

Alex reached into her other pocket, feeling a circumference. She took it and pulled it out, finding her golden Snitch flapping quietly.

She smiled. "Snitch, with me."

The golden ball fluttered rapidly, peeling into the air like a small hummingbird. Alex even thought he was alive and understanding. Lexa was staring at her nails, uninterested.

The agent stepped into position. "Snitch, you distract them."

The ball fluttered with enthusiasm.

"Lexa, you don't go. You help me think clearly."

 _'I'm just a hallucination, I'll do what I can.'_

 _They're going to pay they're going to pay they're going to pay they're going to pay._

Alex jumped in her place a couple of times, doing her best to make her cloudy brain remember everything she had learned in her training, both Artemis's and the DEO instructors's. _I'm... the Greatest... and no one messes with me._

"AAAHAAAAHHH!"

Alex kicked the lock with all the forces bestowed by her madness. The door crackled with a **_krasck_** , splinters jumping all over the place and the pain running down her leg as if she had been bitten by a fire ant. The guards stepped back in surprise and pulled out their daggers _'Damn!' 'Tartarus!'._

"Snitch, attack!"

The winged ball flew like crazy, around the heads of both guards, who still hadn't recovered from the surprise. Alex wasted no time and jumped on the back of the first guard, clutching her grip on the scalpel and cutting her throat with a single gash. She ignored the feeling of warm moisture in her hands and came down from her back, taking the dagger from the dying woman's hands. The other still struggled with the angry Snitch, her eyes open with disbelief and astonishment. She advanced to attack, lifting her dagger; but Alex crouched in time and grabbed her blue cape, lifting it and catching her with it. The Snitch did not stop fluttering around the Amazon.

Alex took the dagger and plunged it into her opponent's chest (* ** _ZECK!*_** ), staining the blue cape with red. She got a groan of fear and pain, and the desperate struggle of a condemned.

 _"DIE!"_ Alex again plunged the dagger into her chest **_(*ZECK!*)_** _"DIE!"_ **_(*ZECK!*)_** "Die, die, die filthy traitor! Die and stay away from my family! I won't let you hurt them!" **_(*ZECK!*)_** "Not Kara, nor Maggie, nor my mother, nor my friends, nor the Commander Lexa!" **_(*ZECK!*)_**

The Amazon fell to the ground and Alex grabbed her neck, stabbing her twice more, growling like a wild animal.

 _'I think you should stop doing that.'_ Lexa knelt beside her. _'She's already dead.'_

Alex gasped and released the corpse, walking away from the pool of blood that was forming under her feet. _You messed with the wrong person._

"Bitch."

 _'Check her belt.'_

"Now I don't have time, Lexa, damn it! I have to find Maggie and Diana and kill all the traitors who crosses my path!"

 _'THAT'S IT!'_ shouted the Snitch. _'Kill them, kill them all!'_

 _'First, check her belt, now.'_ grunted Lexa.

Alex frowned and leaned over the corpse, brushing away the bloody cloak with disgust.

"This piece of garbage only has a sword, what...?" Alex raised the light sword, her eyes widening in surprise and pain as she noted that the sword had an **_'A'_** engraved on the hilt. "A-Artemis..."

Lexa looked at the floor. _'They should have taken it after you lost consciousness.'_

Alex sobbed, shaking with rage. "All will die."

 _'ALL!'_ shouted the Snitch.

Alex put her sword in her belt and walked down the hall, followed by the Commander Lexa and her blood-thirsty Snitch.

 _You're crazy, Alex. And you have no reason to restrain yourself._

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **6:43 PM**

Akila had been shouting insults at Persephone for the last half hour, squeezing her hands around the bars and shivering with anger. Maggie would have loved to know what the Shim'Tar was saying, but unfortunately she did not understand Banen. Instead, Maggie Sawyer had her back against the cell's wall, with her arms crossed.

Staring at the crushed blue roses on the floor.

Maggie felt something rotten inside her. The feeling of rotting spread to her arms, with which she had hugged Io a few hours ago.

"Shit..." Akila whispered. Maggie had never seen the Shim'Tar so dispirited. "Shit... Shit... Shit..." she fell to the floor. "She was right... All this time, she was right."

Maggie did not realize she was looking at her. "Who?" Akila stared at her. "I don't plan to die here, Akila. But just in case, we should say a couple of things. I want you to know that you look like my former school coach. I hated that bitch with all my soul."

Akila smiled slightly. "A few minutes ago I told you that one day I realized that the Themys' Blessing was more like a curse."

Maggie nodded. "If you ask me, everything on this fucking island is a curse."

Akila looked at her fingers. "I learned it when I was thirteen." she sighed. "During the last months of the war... Have you heard of General Philippus?"

Maggie's lips tightened slightly. "Kara told us about her a few days ago at breakfast. She was a General who defected."

"Yes, she defected." Akila bit her lip, her eyes glittering in the light of the torch. "She defected after we both witnessed... we..." she sighed deeply.

"Artemis and I used to go hunting outside the city when we were little." Akila looked at her. "The war was leaving us short of resources, and Artemis's mother had decided that they would have to stop feeding Alexa. Artie, being Artie, refused to obey and began to hunt on her own. When I found out I started to accompany her, even though I knew it was forbidden. But a couple of spankings were preferable to attending her funeral... So we began to hunt in the mountains."

"That day I was chasing a rabbit." continued the Bana. "Artemis and I had separated, I think she was following the trail of a larger dam, I don't remember. I was chasing that stupid rabbit between a valley of huge rocks, a place where we used to play before the war. The rabbit managed to escape into a hole in the ground. I was going to light a fire to get him out when... I felt someone beating me from behind.

There she was: the most horrible being I've ever seen in my life. A Themiscyrian soldier, with feverish eyes and growling like a wild animal. The Themy lifted me as if I were no heavier than a doll and put a dagger to my neck. I have no words to express how frightened I was. She looked into my eyes and I felt her breath, a horrible smell of madness. She said ' _Looks like you got lost, you little rat'_."

Akila did not look Maggie in the eye. "She was about to cut my throat when another Themy appeared, a woman with braids and brown skin. Her eyes widened in horror when she saw her companion about to kill me."

" _'Ophelia...'_ she said, trying to approach slowly. _'Ophelia, she's just a girl'_."

The Themy pressed the knife into my neck. _'She will grow up and she will do it'_ she growled in a broken voice. _'She will grow up and she will do it, Philippus'_."

The other Themy kept moving slowly. _'Ophelia, please, leave the knife. It's just a girl_.' she repeated."

"I felt the knife tremble on my neck when she replied _'It's not fair'_."

"What thing?" Maggie asked.

Akila bit her lip. "She sobbed like a child. _'It's not fair,_ ' she said again. _'It's supposed to be that the Gods blessed **us** , why can't we fall in love and create families too?'_." The Shim'Tar closed her eyes. "I had never been so afraid in my life, and I wasn't afraid to die, but that somehow that Themy would infect me with all her pain, all her misery." she sighed.

"At no point did Philippus stop moving slowly, and finally, the Themy pushed me and I fell on the rocks. The knife was pointing toward Philippus when I looked up."

"She was still trying to calm her down. _'Ophelia, lower the knife. Everything will be fine, I promise'_."

"But the other Themy just shook her head. _'I won't go back to that island, Philippus. I'm tired of yearning for something I'll never be able to have. Fuck the Queen'_."

"And then she used the knife to cut her own throat."

Maggie opened her mouth slightly.

Akila looked at her. "I ran out of there without looking back, thinking General Philippus would chase me. She didn't." she bit her lip. "Years later, I knew that she defected and disappeared that night. I hope she has fled far, far away."

Maggie bit her lip so hard she felt the taste of blood, covering her eyes with a mixture of shame and sadness. "Everything was in front of my eyes all this time." she said in a dry voice. "All the time... on each of their faces, and I didn't see it." _I can't believe I've been so blind._ "Jealousy... Centuries and centuries of jealousy growing in silence against Diana and Hippolyta."

"Because Diana has a mother and the Queen has a daughter." Akila looked at her with bright eyes. "Do you understand now why I told you that your friend Diana is selfish? She not only brought Artie to live in a place where she would only be scorned, she shamelessly exposed her happiness to the rest of her sisters."

"And when Lena was born... That must have been the last straw." Maggie stood up. "Diana didn't know."

"It's evident to everyone that she's not very brilliant." Akila clenched her fist. "The immortals have their hearts trapped in gold cages, Maggie. The Themy who nearly killed me went insane and committed suicide, but it seems that the ones here appreciate their lives a little more."

"Oh, you can't imagine how much."

Maggie looked up at the cell door, where she saw Persephone standing with her arms folded. The scar on her face looked unpleasant in the torchlight, like a deformed white worm.

Akila showed her teeth like a wild animal. "Shame and disgrace of the Amazons. Your Goddesses will destroy you all for this treason."

"Even the Gods have Gods." Persephone replied looking at Maggie. "And He is on our side."

"What do you want?" Akila growled.

"I want to apologize to Maggie." she sighed. "I wish you didn't have to die like the Banas, but the reality is that you are a threat too. And we can't afford the slightest mistake after what we've sacrificed."

Maggie looked her up and down, trying to decide if she could strangle her if she was fast enough. _Probably not._ "Why are you doing all this?"

She frowned. "You wouldn't understand."

"Try me."

Persephone ignored Akila's hostile gaze and only looked at Maggie. "When I met Princess Lena for the first time, she was looking for the library. I gave her some wrong directions so that she would end up at the Coliseum. Your lover and her mother were practicing with the bracelets, I thought she would probably be jealous."

"It looks like you had it all well planned." _Make her talk, make her talk._

"Down to the last detail. Menalippe even lied to them about their futures to give them a false sense of security." Persephone sighed. "When I met Lena, she asked me _'What are you doing?_ ' And I told her I was just enjoying the sun. Well, it was true: I was just watching the damn sun, as I have been doing for the last fifty years without blinking." she gritted her teeth. "Our lives pass in silence, as bland as bread without salt."

Akila laughed. "Poor, poor Themy. Jealous of us, Worm-face?"

"Why would I be jealous? You're all already dead. I personally will put your head on a stick like Alkyone did with your puppies."

Akila's mocking expression turned into a grimace of horror, her body freezing like a stone statue.

"Does it really surprise you?" Persephone clenched her fists. "Did you really think Epione would waste medicine on you? All the Banas that Kara of Danvers injured are already dead. We only need to exterminate the rats present here. "

* * *

 **Ginny of Bana-Mighdall**

 **7:05 PM**

Ginny hit the bar with frustration when she could not hear the last thing the jailer had said. _There are problems, I have to help!_ She noticed with surprise that Hermione's face had frozen into stone, her eyes bright and her lips trembling.

"Could you hear what she said?"

"They're dead."

"What!?" said the smaller girl.

"They've been killed, Ginny." sobbed the other girl. "After the monster attacked them they didn't take them to the healer, they killed them." tears streamed down her cheeks.

Ginny felt a stabbing pain in her chest, as if a very fine needle stung her heart. She felt her own eyes cloud over with tears.

 _'Pss'_

Ginny glanced toward the front cell, where Xena and Gabrielle were kneeling on the floor, watching them calmly. "Are you sure you heard right, Hermione?" asked Xena.

She nodded.

Xena took a deep breath. "We're in serious trouble, little ones. We have to get out of here as soon as possible. I have a plan, but I need you to help me, Ginny."

The red-haired girl looked at her with concern. "The cells..."

"They're designed for adults." Gabrielle whispered. "Not for children, remember? There are no children in Themiscyra."

"You're small and your bones are flexible, Ginny." Xena looked into her eyes. "Try to get out through the bars."

Ginny looked at the bars, black and raspy, rough to the touch. _I can't I can't I can't._

"Ginny, we'll all die if we don't get out of here." Xena said with a solemn face. "You can go rescue the Shim'Tar and Maggie of Sawyer. I promise you everything will be fine, you just have to get out of there and get to the crossbow at the end of the aisle."

 _I have to kill the jailer_. Ginny shivered slightly, taking her friend's hand. _It's her or us._

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **7:07 PM**

Akila lost control of herself and threw herself against the bars, bellowing violently in Banen, trying to reach Persephone with her hands. The detective knew it was useless to try to reassure her, instead she stood there trying to form a plan, trying to think of something.

It was then that she saw beyond the head of Persephone, watching the hallway, just as the little redhead girl slipped her head through the bars of her cell. Their eyes met and the girl put a finger to her lips. Maggie looked away quickly. _Fuck, fuck, fuck._

The detective looked at Persephone, who was out of Akila's reach with a mocking smile on her face. _I have to distract her._

"It's all your fault!" Maggie shouted at Akila.

Maggie lunged at the Shim'Tar, taking her by surprise and dragging her to the floor of the cell. Akila looked at her with confused eyes as Maggie threw herself over her, trying to hit her with her fists.

"Maggie, are you crazy!?"

"It's all your fault! If only you weren't stupid savages I wouldn't be in this fucking cell _!" Hurry up, Ginny, I don't know how long I can distract her_. "I don't want to die like your Amazons, because of you you stupid!"

Akila took her off with a smack, but Maggie rushed back at her with all her desperate strength, trying to meet her eyes to make her understand. _Fuck, look me in the eye_. "Damn stupid savage!"

"Maggie, stop now!" Akila was blocking her blows quickly, trying to push her away rather than attack her. _Just. let me. get close. to your ear._

Maggie lifted her arm to push Akila's two away, and get close enough to whisper.

 _"Distraction."_

The Shim'Tar's eyes widened in surprise.

 _"Distraction."_

"YOU KNOW NOTHING, YOU LITTLE USELESS!" Akila dragged Maggie up and pulled her away from her.

"Enough!" Shouted Persephone, unsheathing her sword. "If you don't stop fighting right now, I'll kill you myself. No matter how beautiful Maggie is."

Maggie saw behind her, where the redheaded girl was approaching with a crossbow in her hands, trembling like a leaf.

"Persephone." said Maggie, moving away from Akila. "You don't stop repeating that I'm pretty, but I have to know: did you always mean it or was it just another way to make fun of us?"

The blond woman looked into her eyes, then exchanged a warning look with Akila. "That wasn't a lie."

"No?"

"No."

"I don't believe you." Maggie said seriously. "It's just one more lie."

"I wish it were a lie and that I didn't care about your death. But the truth is that I have never met a person as brave as you, and that makes you more beautiful than anyone else." she sighed sadly. "It won't be easy to kill you."

 ** _*TRANK*_**

The tip of the arrow came out of Persephone's eye, her head breaking like a walnut. For a second the Amazon looked confused, her one luminous eye staring at Maggie with disbelief and pain, even with accusation. But a second later that eye lost all light, becoming a mere inanimate object. Maggie gasped as she saw the corpse fall to the floor of the dungeon.

And behind her was Ginny, trembling like a leaf, giving small moans like a wounded little animal.

"Ginny." said Akila, approaching the bars, reaching for the keys in the corpse's belt. "You had no choice, Ginny. It was her or us, and you saved us." Akila took the keys. "And now we're going to get out of here."

* * *

 **Totally Mad Danvers**

 **7:37 PM**

The torches gleamed with a violet glow, rabbits with hats fled as she advanced, the Snitch recited Spartan poetry, and Lexa accompanied her with an expression of fury on her face. Alex was careful to be as quiet as possible, trying to suppress the overwhelming desire she had to laugh, and laugh, and laugh...

 _'Amazons ahead._ ' said Lexa.

Alex hid behind a statue of Athena in the middle of the hallway, reaching for the Snitch, which was tapping on a window. Lexa just stood there, sure no one could see her.

A group of some five Amazons walked steadily, not looking in Alex's direction. They turned into a corridor and disappeared. _There are many._

 _'You have to kill them all!'_ shouted the Snitch.

Lexa watched her as she came out of hiding. _'They seemed to be guards. We must be getting closer to something important.'_

"Diana." murmured Alex. "Maggie..."

 _'Maybe.'_ Lexa looked down the hall. _'Don't rush, remember to move forward in silence. Open your eyes wide.'_

"I'm a DEO agent, I don't need you to tell me that."

 _'You're crazy, yes you need it.'_

Alex took the sword from her belt, moving forward in silence, trying to ignore the torches's mocking glares and the Snitch's furious screams. The sound of her footsteps barely reached her ears, silent as the murmurs of a mouse. Alex reached the end of the hallway and peeped her head slightly to the other side to see.

It was an open room, lit by so many torches that it almost seemed like daytime inside. A group of twenty Amazons guarded a glass urn in silence. Inside it was something bright, but Alex couldn't see well. One of the Amazons was distinguishable from the others, thanks to the golden armor she wore. Alex spotted a square jaw on a blond head. _Menalippe._

Lexa's eyes flashed with anger. _'Even the seer is involved in this.'_

 _'THEY MUST DIE!_ ' shouted the Snitch.

"And whatever they're guarding must be important." Alex narrowed her eyes. "We have to take it."

 _'You have to get a distraction.'_ said the Commander.

Alex and the Snitch looked around, trying to find some solution, some weapon to help them. _There's nothing useful_. She bit her lip, trying to think.

 _'Hey!'_ said a new voice to her left. The torch on the wall, now blue, laughed cheerfully. _'Nothing causes more distraction than fire, girl...'_

 _'KILL THEM WITH FIRE, ALEX!'_ The Snitch shouted impatiently.

Lexa stood in front of her. _'No. You have to distract them and concentrate on getting that thing. Don't forget the priority.'_

 _Maggie. Diana. I'm coming for you, hold on._

The fire started to chuckle ( _hahaha you tickle me!)_ when Alex took the torch. Stepping back a little, the agent returned to the window she had seen earlier. Opening it in silence, she looked down, where the beautiful rose garden slept in the dew of the night. Alex managed to distinguish a pair of Amazons standing guard by the blue roses. ( _'Take it Lady Alex, this is for you.'_ )

 _'Kill them all, Alexandra.'_ said the Snitch with Artemis's voice. _'Let them die screaming.'_

"As a doctor, let me tell you that there's no worse death than burning."

Alex threw the torch out the window, pointing at the blue roses. _The next one will be you, Io._ The torch swung four times in the air and fell on a bush behind the guards. She waited three seconds, until the fire came alive from the depths of the plant, consuming it with the fury of revenge. Alex watched the guards stepping back in fear of the fire, shouting words she did not understand. The fiery red monster spread quickly to the next bush, and to the next, and to the next. _And there are no firefighters on this island._

Alex smiled happily, backing quickly down the hall to re-occupy her hiding place behind Athena's statue. The noises of hurrying footsteps soon echoed on the walls, alarmed voices shouting _'fotiá! fotiá!_ ', innumerable Amazons running towards the garden, so many that Alex had trouble controlling the Snitch's bloodlust ( _KILLTHEMKILLTHEMKILLTHEM_ ). She waited until the last of them had passed, until the sound of her running feet stopped reaching her ears, and then she came out of hiding place quickly.

The brightness of the room at the end of the hallway hurt her eyes and Lexa's. Menalippe had not followed her companions, staying by the glass urn, as Alex intuited she would. The Snitch flapped furiously at her side. Alex moved slowly closer, her eyes never leaving the shiny figure of Menalippe's armor. The seer heard the sound of her footsteps and hardened her posture. "Identify yourself."

"I'm your worst nightmare." Alex bit her lip and almost laughed at how cliché that phrase had sounded. "Didn't you see me in your crystal ball?"

Menalippe opened her eyes in surprise. "You should be locked up, I saw you locked up in your room."

"Maybe you should have picked a dungeon." Alex tightened her grip on her sword.

"All are full." said Menalippe with a solemn face. "Morpheus' Grapes are making you hallucinate. I give you a chance to surrender, I promise to kill you without pain."

Alex started laughing. _The same, all are the same._

"Maybe I'm having hallucinations, but I'll get better. You won't get out of this room alive."

"I'm sorry to tell you that you would only be cured with the water of the river Cocytus." Menalippe put her hand on the hilt of her sword. "You're better off dead than crazy, foreigner."

"You're all traitors."

"We are survivors."

Menalippe jumped into the air and raised her sword, clashing it with Alex's. The Amazon threw a kick at her chest and Alex felt the pain of the impact, biting her lip. The Agent dodged the sword again, taking advantage of her smaller size. ( _'Don't fight like an Amazon'_ ). Alex's elbow hit Menalippe's chin. ( _'Fight as if you were the Greatest, Alexandra'_ ).

The Amazon spat blood and threw a punch that Alex could barely dodge. In the distance, Lexa's voice shouted advice. Alex raised her sword and attacked on the right, barely touching the Amazon's arm. Menalippe lowered her sword twice, forcing Alex to lower her head, feeling the sword cut off some of her hairs. From that position she threw herself against Menalippe, raising her hand to grasp the arm of the sword so that the Amazon was momentarily trapped, but she reacted quickly and got out of Alex's grip. Her foot struck the Agent's head in a violent flying kick, causing Alex to fly two meters to the right and fall painfully on the floor.

"Accept your defeat." Menalippe approached. "I have thousands of years of experience in combat. I'm the oldest Amazon after Hippolyta. I will take care of our people better than she ever did, starting by destroying threats like you."

Alex spat blood and a tooth, dodging the blow of the sword on time, rising to avoid a second blow. "You've been lying from the beginning."

"For centuries!" Their swords met, each pushing against their attacker. Alex watched her eyes burn. "It was preferable to say that the Gods stopped talking to me before sharing the atrocities of their words! Diana's daughter will bring our destruction!"

"No." Alex grunted. "I will do it."

And then she let go of the sword.

Menalippe fell forward, losing the balance of Alex's push. In a swift movement Alex pulled the scalpel out of her pocket and sank it into the Amazon's eye ( ** _'AAAAAHHHHHH!'_** ), punching her in the nose and using all her strength to wrench the sword from her hand.

Menalippe fell to the floor moaning in pain, crying through her only one eye. Alex bent down and picked up her own sword, then walked calmly toward the Amazon and stabbed her in both feet. Menalippe shouted again.

"I don't need to be sane." she tightened her neck with both swords. "Crazy or sane, my priority will always be to protect my loved ones. And you have already taken one of them away." Alex spat blood on the floor. "Where's Artemis?"

Menalippe laughed. "You will never see her again, never. It's too late, we have cut off all the Banas's heads and put them on sticks."

 _'KIIIILL HEEEEEER!'_

"Not yet, Snitch." said Alex with tears in her eyes. "This is the deal: tell me where Maggie and Diana are and I'll let you live, if you don't I'll cut your head off without a second thought. I give you my word as Amazon."

Menalippe groaned. "M-Maggie of Sawyer and the surviving Banas are in the dungeons. Diana was taken by the guards into the underground tunnels behind Doom's Doorway. B-But you must not go, the future..."

"I don't give a shit about your visions." Alex whispered. "Thank you, Menalippe. You have done a great favor to this madwoman."

 ** _*Zzlip*_**

The blood pool widened, reaching the sole of Alex's shoes. She watched Menalippe's dead eyes for a moment, trying to search for remorse within herself. But all she found was the Snitch's cheerful voice, happy at the bloodshed.

 _'You told her you weren't going to kill her.'_ said Lexa serenely at her side.

"I gave her my word as Amazon." Alex grunted and kicked the decapitated head as if it were a ball. "I'm not a traitor like them, Commander. I'm not a fucking Amazon." She put both swords on her belt and walked away from the corpse.

 _'You're just a crazy woman with a hurt heart.'_

Alex felt a couple of tears fall down her cheeks. "I'll have time to feel better when I save Maggie and Diana."

Alex turned and walked to the glass urn, trying to identify the bright object inside. She put her hand on the transparent surface, trying to move it a little. The glass was heavy, as if it were lead; Alex gathered all her strength and threw the glass to the floor, breaking it into a thousand pieces with a **_Krash._** The echo of the noise bounced off the walls, hurting the Agent's ears.

Lexa studied the object intently. _'It looks like a Dagger.'_

Alex took it in her hands, surprised at how light that golden Dagger was. "I think it's the Dagger of Hera." The runes on the blade glowed. Alex put it in her pocket. "It's coming with me."

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **7:40 PM**

The beach where the Banas had left their boats was only guarded by three Amazons, who were quickly killed by Xena and Akila without even blinking. Maggie felt the sweat trickle down her back, forcing her mind not to think about everything that had happened in just one day. The terror of the night fell upon her like a sinister stranger. _Something isn't right here, there are very few guards. We can't have been so discreet._

Akila wasted no time and took little Ginny in her arms, approaching one of the boats and leaving her inside. Asami put Hermione next to her, and Xena hurried the others to get in too. The Shim'Tar turned to Korra with a fierce look. "I'll leave you in charge of the girls. Gabrielle, take them all home. I must stay with Maggie and find Artie."

"No!" said her daughter. "We have nothing to do with this disaster!"

"My sister needs me, Amara. I can't go and leave her here." Akila squeezed her shoulder with sweetness. "You must go now, it's an order. We'll catch up with you in Bana-Mighdall. I have to find Artie, her stupid wife and the repressed psychopath of her foreign friend."

Maggie felt a wave of gratitude run through her body from top to bottom. _I'm going to find you, Alex._ Her mind was running too fast, trying to think of where she might be. _She wasn't in the dungeon, she has to be in our room. If she's not..._ Maggie forced herself not to think about that possibility.

The detective approached the corpses, taking the sword of the nearest one. Then she removed the helmet and the rest of the armor. Akila looked at her in confusion.

"We have to go unnoticed." she said simply.

The Shim'Tar nodded with understanding, and approached another corpse, copying Maggie's actions. Xena exchanged a glance with Akila and approached the last corpse, beginning to undress it as well.

"Are you coming with us?" Maggie asked.

The brunette nodded. "Where the Shim'Tar goes, I go." she exchanged a look with Gabrielle. "Go home, make sure everyone is fine. I'll see you in a few hours." the blonde simply closed the distance and hugged her.

 ** _*BAAAAAM*_**

A huge noise sounded in the distance, like the sound of a massive gas explosion. Maggie turned her head, seeing in the distance an orange light, shining in the distance like the sun during a new sunset. _But in the wrong place_. Her mouth opened in disbelief. _What the hell...?_

" "That can only be a fire. " " she and the Shim'Tar said at the same time.

Maggie put on the helmet, taking care that it covered her face well. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Akila hug Amara and Xena kiss Gabrielle, and then she started to run.

* * *

 **The woman in disguise**

 **7:53 PM**

Maggie ran in the opposite direction to the Amazons, trying not to lose sight of the swift figures of the two Banas. The armor felt very heavy on her body, warming as they approached. The helmet limited her peripheral vision, occasioning some clashes with the fleeing Amazons.

The fire was devouring the rose garden and half of the Palace. The heat was so overwhelming that the three of them stopped in their places, watching the scene with disbelief and horror. One of the houses next to her collapsed, being reached by the flames quickly. _The Palace! The Palace is burning!_

It was then that the infernal figure walked out of the flames a few meters away.

A woman with her face disfigured in a grimace of anger, the incarnate personification of a Fury. She had her clothes covered in blood from top to bottom. The red liquid was also present in the two swords in her hands, dripping indolently toward the floor. Maggie groaned as she recognized Alex, and her heart froze at the sound of her girlfriend bursting into laughter in a shrill laugh.

"AALLL WILL DIEEEEE!"

Akila removed her helmet. "Ishtar..."

"Alex!" Maggie took off her helmet and started running toward her. _"Alex!"_ but her girlfriend seemed not to have listened to her, because she began to run down the next street, away from the fire and the three women. **_"Alex!"_** Maggie slipped in a pool of blood and her body hit the floor, getting up immediately and ignoring the pain in her chin, but she could not stop her eyes from getting wet. **_"A-ALEX!"_** her voice cracked .

There was a moment of panic in which they lost sight of her, but Maggie realized with horror that her girlfriend was leaving a trail ( _corpses, oh Alex, what did they do to you?_ ) with which to follow her. When her eyes finally found Alex again, her girlfriend was climbing a hill, trying to reach the huge metal door that was at the foot of the mountain.

"Dammit." Xena said in frustration. "Doom's Doorway."

* * *

 **Diana of Nowhere**

 **8:10 PM**

Her sweat-laden body was growing weaker, Diana could feel as every second was more difficult to move forward, keep her eyes open, **_breathe._** Myrto kicked her hip to make her walk faster ( _'Come on, we don't have all day!'_ ). _Artemis._ Diana did not fall thanks to her chains, but her open wound burned so hard that she let out a groan. _Lena, Missy, where are you?_

Diana heard the vermin's murmur flee from the torchlight and the sound of the footsteps. It wasn't much further. _But I can't take much more_. She felt Myrto pull the chain to hurry her. _I have lost a lot of blood._

( _'Mommy!'_ )

 _No, please, please, not now._

 ** _(Green eyes shine, small hands pull at her hair._** _'No sad, Mommy. Mun mun.'_ )

"Stop." ordered Alkyone.

Diana dropped to her knees, almost falling on the plaque. A tear slid down her cheek, wetting Hades's engraved face.

"Finally..." whispered the bald Amazon. "Finally, here it is."

She saw Alkyone's feet move to stand in front of the big plaque. With effort, she lifted her head. The Amazon's face gleamed, looking sinister in the torchlight, as if it sucked all the sparse heat and life in that subterranean tunnel.

Charis pulled out a small knife and neared the blade to the palm of her hand.

"Wait." Alkyone stopped her. "No need to waste."

Diana was lifted off the ground by Myrto, so tired that the pain was beginning to fade. _Lena._ Alkyone approached her and plunged two of her fingers into her wound, managing to revive the pain and make Diana gasp. _Missy._ Then the bald woman spread her bloody hand over the plaque, dropping Diana's blood on Hades's empty eyes. _Maggie._

The plate slid slowly, the most horrible sound the brunette had ever heard. The sound of all hope lost. _Kara._

Alkyone bent down and reached into the hiding place, her face smiling with an almost orgasmic bliss as she took the black Dagger.

"Here it is." she said. Diana saw with surprise that a thin trickle of blood streamed down her nose. "Here it is."

Similar smiles appeared on Myrto and Charis's faces, of such extreme happiness that Diana felt sick. _Alex._

Without warning, Alkyone slapped her. "Now let's go back to the city. I'm going to tie our princess to a pole so everyone sees her bleed to death."

 _I would have wanted to spend a thousand years with you all._

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **8:17 PM**

Doom's Doorway was wide open when Maggie rushed in. Alex had not even bothered to close the door. The darkness devoured all the light just as they entered, causing Maggie's pupils to dilate to achieve seeing something in front of her. _Two tunnels, both dark_.

"Xena, go to the right." ordered Akila. "Maggie, you and me to the left."

Maggie and the Shim'Tar hurried through the left tunnel, running blindly, only accompanied by the sound of their heartbeats. Maggie put her foot in a hole and nearly twisted her ankle, but Akila prevented her from falling in time. _Shit shit shit shit._ The sound of her breathing was accompanied by another sound, the sound of their gasps; and a distant murmur, coming through her ears and down her back. _Water, it's the noise of water._

A light appeared in the distance, a pale blue glow impossible to find underground. Maggie and Akila left the tunnel and found themselves in the largest cavern the detective had ever seen. The strange light did not come from the ceiling, but from a ravine to the left. _Oh no..._

Alex was standing a meter away from that ravine, in front of the blind guard. Maggie saw with horror that the guard had not put on her blindfold, leaving her empty sockets in full view.

"Who are you?" Philomela asked Alex.

"I'm many people." Alex spread both swords, growling in a low voice. "I'm a sister, a girlfriend, a friend... Your people are saying that I'm a murderer. Lexa says I'm a madwoman, but the friend of mine you just killed used to say I'm The Greatest." Alex smiled. "I like how it sounds."

Akila groaned at her side and Maggie felt an unexpected surge of pain. _No._ She shook her head. _No, that asshole can't be dead._

"You won't see another dawn, girl."

"Don't make me laugh. Did you hear that, Lexa? She said 'see!' Hahahaha!"

Philomela jumped into the air, lifting her sword to attack Alex. Alex crossed her two swords and stopped the blind woman's attack, raising her foot to kick her in the stomach. Philomela dodged it nimbly, then stepped back at the blow of Alex's two swords.

 _I have to help her. I have to..._

"Maggie."

To her left, the other three ex-royal guards came out of one of the tunnels. The blonde one had chains in her hands and was dragging ( _DIANA! OH MY GOD!_ ) the princess covered in blood. The guards looked with amazement at the fight between Alex and Philomela, amazement that only lasted a second before Myrto and Charis drew their swords and advanced towards them.

"NO!"

Myrto and Charis turned to her, their faces deformed by anger and changing their direction. Maggie remembered with horror that although she was a good fighter, she had never used a sword. _But I won't let you kill me so easily, you bastards._

Beside her, Akila drew her sword, and she imitated it, a second before Myrto lunged at her.

Maggie raised her sword in time, holding it as firmly as possible, blocking Myrto's attack. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Akila attack Charis and Alex jump to avoid Philomela, but her attention did not stay on them for long. Myrto struck again with her sword and Maggie moved her head, but not fast enough, as revealed the heat on her cheek. The detective stepped back and stumbled a little, regaining her balance quickly to dodge the sword again. _I can do it, just imagine that she's an alien._ Maggie got up and attacked for the first time, being blocked with a force that almost made her drop the sword. _Don't look at her face, look at her sword_. The sword turned to the right, breaking the armor on her arm but not reaching her flesh. The sword moved back to the left, Maggie bit her lip when she blocked. Then again to the right, to the left, to the right, to the left, so fast that the detective could only step back, the sword shining in the blue light emanating from the ravine.

Alex screamed in rage, and then there was a hollow sound. Maggie knew she could not look, but she could not help it. Alex's attacker was on the floor, writhing in pain and with blood coming out of a wound in her lower belly. Alex was running towards Alkyone, who was dragging Diana towards...

The ravine.

 _No._

The next thing Maggie felt was the hard price of her distraction, striking against her chest in the form of a violent kick. She heard Akila ( _'MAGGIE!'_ ) scream in the distance. The detective fell back and her head hit the floor, feeling such a violent pain that she thought her eyes were going to explode.

And then she felt the tip of Myrto's sword on her neck. _No no no no._

"It was easy, little creature." said the blonde with furious eyes. "It's a pity that-..."

 ** _*ZAS!*_**

The sword split Myrto's skull like a watermelon, spilling most of its viscous gray matter into Maggie's lap. Akila pushed the corpse impatiently, her pupils tiny as dots of black ink. "MAGGIE, GET UP!"

She saw Charis behind her, running toward her opponent.

 _"AKILA!"_

 ** _*Pash*_**

She reacted too late.

Charis's sword entered her neck, producing the most horrible sound Maggie had ever heard, like a kitchen knife cutting a barbecue. Charis twisted her sword and tore it violently. The almost decapitated body fell on her legs.

Maggie heard a shrill scream that froze her blood, not realizing it was hers.

"You're next."

Charis took her hair and dragged her from under the two corpses. Maggie could hear herself shouting, but she could not understand what she was saying. The pain in her scalp felt strange, like a caress. Finally she was able to understand her words.

 _"-NGBITCHFUCKINGBITCHFUCKINGBITCHFUCKIN-"_

Charis dragged her to where Alkyone, Diana, and Alex were, throwing her next to Alex. Her girlfriend had both swords in her hands, threatening Alkyone, who had a knife on the throat of a Diana too weak, and was stood on the edge of the ravine. Maggie, still shaking from what she had just seen, felt Charis pulling her hair to get her to her feet.

The light emanating from the ravine shone in Alex's hair. "I won't tell you again. Let. Diana. Go"

Alkyone pressed her knife into Diana's neck. The brunette's eyes met Maggie's, filled with so much pain that the detective let out a gasp.

"Girl." Alkyone spoke to Alex. "You're not distinguishing the real from what is not."

"This is the real thing: I'll behead you for what you have done."

"Where do you think your lover is?"

"DON'T FUCK ME!" shouted Alex. "I just have Lexa by my side and I sent my Snitch to look for my sister! Kara and I will kill you all!"

"Your hallucinations are getting worse." said Alkyone. "You don't even realize that your lover is by your side."

It was then that she saw her for the first time, trembling, covered in blood, her eyes bulging. Alex let out a gasp. "M-Maggie?"

The detective realized in time that that was what Alkyone wanted. Taking advantage of Alex's distraction, she pushed Diana to the ravine. _NOO! NOOO!_

"DIANA!"

Maggie did not think it, she simply reacted. Jumping like gunpowder, the detective ran to there and reached out, trying to grasp something, anything, of the brunette. She managed to hold her foot, but because of the abruptness and speed of her action, Maggie lost balance and her body fell forward.

 _"AAAHH!"_

Her other hand clutched the edge of the ravine. The light was everywhere, on her body, on Diana, on the roof of the cave.

 _"AAALEX!"_

 _"MAGGIE!"_

Alex's bloody face, distorted by fear, appeared over her, on the edge of the ravine. She reached out to her hand. _Just a few centimeters more..._

Alkyone appeared behind Alex.

 _"ALEX, WATCH OUT!"_

Her girlfriend turned around, only to receive the impact of a punch on her nose that made her fall backwards too, rolling over the edge and falling into the void, inches away from her. ( _ALEX!_ ) But the Agent managed to hold on to Diana's inert body, adding her weight to what Maggie's sore arm had to endure.

 _It's too much weight... I can't... I can't..._

"How beautiful, you three about to fall to certain death!" the blue light turned Alkyone's face into a perverse mask. "I'm sorry I can't give you coins to pay Charon."

Gently, taking her time, the bald Amazon lead the tip of her sword to Maggie's trembling hand. Maggie moaned as she felt the cold of the metal slip beneath her hand.

"Your end is our beginning."

Alkyone shook her sword. Maggie's hand released her grip on the edge of the ravine.

And all three fell into the void.

* * *

...

 _Maggie opened the car door, taking Alex's hand and leading her outside. A playful smile settled on her lips, adjusting the black bandage that covered her eyes._

 _"Don't look, Danvers. You promised." Maggie said with a smile._

 _Alex bit her lip, encircling her waist with her arm. "And I never break my promises, Sawyer."_

 _Maggie approached the end of the street, stopping when she heard the murmur of the sea. It was a perfect day to go to the beach, the detective could not believe she had been lucky enough to leave work early._

 _"Can I take the blindfold off?"_

 _"You can take the blindfold off, babe."_

 _Alex removed the bandage and her face lit up in an even bigger smile. The rolling of the waves kept a conversation with the sound of the gulls. The wind moved her hair slightly. In the distance, a Britney Spears song sounded on the radio, played by a couple of boys surrounded by fifty cats and a parrot._

 _"Oh, Maggie..."_

 _"This Valentine I prepared better than the previous one." Maggie took her hand and kissed it. "Happy Valentine's Day, babe."_

* * *

 **The woman At The Beginning of the World**

 **?:?**

At no point did Maggie Sawyer see darkness, instead there was the blue glow of the light around her, hearing a distant murmur, like the sound of the beach on her second Valentine's with Alex. If she ignored the violent pain in her body, she could pretend she was there, sipping carrot juice with her arm around her girlfriend.

But the reality was very different.

When Maggie opened her eyes, she was surprised at the clarity at the bottom of the ravine, where the light was so bright that she felt she was inside the sun. She was wet, totally drenched from top to bottom, with her hair stuck to her face. Her fingers touched the sand beneath her. Maggie tried to move a little despite the insufferable, totally unbearable pain that ran through her body. Raising her head was an act of titanic will.

The bottom of the ravine was clear as daylight, thanks to the dancing lights that came from the river in front of her. She let out a gasp of genuine weariness. "Where I am?"

 _"You're by the Cocytus River, little one."_

Maggie stood up in alarm when she saw Akila sitting quietly at her side, her legs crossed on the sand, looking placidly at the water.

"Can't be." Maggie's voice sounded raspy. "I saw you up there... You just ..."

 _"Died?"_ The Shim'Tar looked at her with amusement. _"Yes, Charis plunged her sword into my neck. It was painful as hell, but at least it was quick."_

"I'm dead?" her eyes filled with tears. "Oh my God, I'm dead?"

 _"No Maggie, you're not dead. You're wet, and the dead are dry. You can still go back up there."_

Her breathing quickened. "Akila, I'm sorry." a couple of tears fell down her cheeks. "You died because you saved me from Myrto. I'm sorry."

 _"Don't apologize."_ The Bana smiled a little. _"It wasn't your fault, Maggie. It wasn't you who killed me, but Charis."_ she sighed _. "I forbid you to feel guilty."_

 _I can't help it._ "Myrto's dead too."

 _"She's not going to come here."_ Akila looked into her eyes. _"She feels too embarrassed. She's waiting for Charon a mile away. I think that nothing good awaits her in the Underworld."_ she pressed her mouth. _"I wish I could kill her again, but the rules are the rules. We can't fight between us."_

The memory of Alex's eyes returned to her mind, like a stab in her heart. "Alex..." she did her best to get to her feet but only managed to kneel. "Alex, Diana. Akila, where are they? Tell me they're alright, please tell me they're alright."

 _"Alex is fine, she's totally soaked."_ Akila looked past Maggie's shoulder. _"But I'm afraid Diana doesn't have much time left."_

Maggie turned her head, seeing Alex and Diana's bodies lying in the sand two meters from her. "Oh my God..." the detective bit her lip and began to crawl, every inch of her body screaming in pain. Her hands were filled with sand and her heart felt too tired.

Alex was totally drenched, lying unconscious next to Diana. But Diana's bloodied body had only a thin layer of sweat, lying on her back, eyes open, looking up.

"D-Diana." Maggie came to her side and was horrified by the amount of blood. "D-Diana, can you hear me? Hold on, everything will be fine." Maggie cried, trying to press her wound to stop the bleeding. "Everything will be fine."

"Mag... gie..."

"No, don't speak." she sobbed. "You're going to get well, you'll see. You're going to get well and we're going to get the others. _Alex, wake up! You're a fucking doctor!"_

Diana's blue eyes locked on hers. With each second, she looked drier. "She was a... stupid, Maggie."

She sobbed. "Who?"

"Your mother." She laughed "Reject... you? Who would... do that?"

She was crying openly now. "You have to stop talking, you have to save your strength. Please, Diana..."

"Tell Lena... I love her."

"Say it yourself!"

"I can't, dear."

Her body began to tremble, the water on her skin was drying quickly.

"AKILA!" Maggie shouted. "Akila! She's lost a lot of blood, I need help!"

The ghost of the Shim'Tar knelt beside her, watching them closely. _"There's nothing you can do."_

"Don't say that, you idiot! She needs blood! Look for a knife, something we can use as an intravenous, anything!

 _"It wouldn't work."_ she shook her head. _"Themys have special blood, Maggie, immortal blood. Your blood wouldn't work."_

"I can't let her die! She's my friend! She has treated me better than my own mother! I'll do anything, but help me!"

Akila looked at her with opaque eyes. _"Look in your lover's pockets."_

Maggie reached for Alex's jacket, frantically searching in her pockets. Her hands found something square, a first-aid kit. _Oh thank God oh thank God Oh thank God._

 _"Keep looking."_

The next thing Maggie took from Alex's pocket was a golden dagger, bright as sunlight. Maggie stared at her confusedly.

Akila looked at her. _"Don't ask me how the Dagger of Hera ended up in her pocket, but perhaps the Gods have wanted this."_

"Akila, what do I have to do?"

 _"Are you sure that you are willing to become immortal to save her? You're going to lock up your heart in a golden cage."_

"I can't let her die, Akila, dammit!" shouted Maggie. "Tell me what I have to do!"

 _"You have to cut one of your fingers with the Dagger and extract a few drops of blood."_

Maggie carried the Dagger blade to her hand, biting her lip as she felt the pain in her finger. She was so nervous she cut a little more than necessary, staining the sand at her feet with blood. "And now what?"

 _"Put the blade in your mouth and drink your blood."_

Maggie's hand trembled and she almost cut her lip. _Easy, slowly._ She put the dagger blade in her mouth, feeling the sour taste of her own blood. _Calm down, you have to save Diana. Now nothing else matters._

Her body changed suddenly, as if a surge of adrenaline swept through her, up and down. Her wounds felt less painful. Her heart felt lighter in her chest, as if a pair of wings had grown in it. Or as if it had shrunk in size.

 _"You're immortal now."_ Akila sighed sadly. _"Now you can give her blood."_

Maggie quickly opened the first-aid kit, feeling the relief fill her body when she saw an intravenous inside. Quickly she took it, along with a small scalpel. Maggie made a cut on her own arm, inserting the end of the intravenous into her open wound.

"Hold on, Diana."

Maggie made another cut on the brunette's arm, inserting the other end of the intravenous. Her blood began to flow from her body to Diana's, entering her much emptier veins. _Hold on, Diana. Resist a little more._

The seconds passed in complete silence, Maggie using the other arm to press on the wound in her friend's belly.

Diana's body began to moisten.

"W-We have succeeded." she looked at Akila. "Akila, we have saved her, she will live."

The ghost of the Shim'Tar smiled wistfully. _"You still have a lot to do, little one. You have to get out of here."_

Maggie stopped looking at Diana's damp body and looked up, where the top of the ravine could not be seen. "We can't climb."

 _"Then you'll have to move on."_ The ghost looked into her eyes. " _You'll have to walk until you reach the Underworld."_

 _Fuck._ "We want to get out of here, Akila, not to enter the Underworld."

 _"To get to sky, sometimes you have to go to hell, little one."_ she said seriously. _"The only person who can get you out of here is Hades now. When Diana gets better and your lover awakens, you will have to reach the heart of Tartarus if you want to leave it."_

* * *

 _The Hero has lived thousands of lives in one, she will see her world falling apart, her house burning, her family being destroyed. To reach the sky it is necessary to go down to Hell._

 _The Invictus will have her heart trapped in a golden cage, drinking sand and talking to ghosts of a dead world._

* * *

 **The Queen of Nothing**

 **11:23 PM**

Hippolyta had fallen into a sort of sleep, a state between consciousness and unconsciousness that prevented her from thinking of the pain that ran through her body, but more importantly, the pain in her soul. She was aware that she was not in the dungeons, but in a room with a strong smell of charcoal and roses. She could not see what was around her, but she thought it was some deposit.

The door opened at that moment, as painfully bright as a God coming down to earth. _No, no more Gods, they have abandoned me_. A small dark silhouette with a lamp in her hand was standing there, talking to another person that Hippolyta could not see.

 _'Just five minutes, blacksmith. Alkyone wants her ready at midnight.'_

 _'It will be enough.'_

The door closed with a shrill noise, hurting the Queen's ears. The figure in front of her lifted the oil lamp, lighting the room slightly. By the height and title of 'blacksmith', Hippolyta knew that the person in front of her could only be Io. But she could not recognize her face; that serious, mature face could not belong to the blacksmith. Io's eyes seemed opaque, like a ceramic vase.

Hippolyta stared at her, trying to be as lucid as possible. "You don't look the same person."

"You do." Io left the lamp on the floor. "You are covered with dust and filled with blood, and you still look like a Queen."

"What are you doing here? What else do you want to take from me?"

"That was the deal with Alkyone." she sat on the floor in front of her. "I would spy on the foreigners for her, and she would give me a few minutes to talk to you before your execution."

Her heart twisted as if it had been struck. "Have you come to mock, blacksmith? To enjoy my humiliation and pain?"

"I have come to speak." Io crossed her arms. "It's not like you have anything else to do."

"The only thing that interests me is knowing what they did to my family." replied Hippolyta to that unknown face. "If you do not intend to tell me, I do not care what comes out of your mouth."

Io shrugged. "Diana, her friends and a Bana entered Doom's Doorway and didn't come out again. Alkyone said she executed them, but Diana is the one we're talking about. She always finds a way to survive."

 _Diana._ Relief mingled with worry spread through her body. _Please, please, let Diana manage to escape._

"Lena?"

Io's face went impossibly harder. "She left the island with her partner-in-arms. What happened to them is not our bussiness, but Alkyone's friends."

"Who are Alkyone's friends?"

"They call themselves Veritas." Io shrugged. "I don't know much about them, but they don't seem to be people with whom you can mess in and get out unscathed. They have their own pending issues with her."

 _Lena is with her lover. She has to be well, the girl has powers like Diana's. Lena has to be fine._

"...Artemis?"

Io raised an eyebrow. "Since when do you care about her?"

"She is still my daughter's wife. What happened to her?"

Io smiled placidly. "I traversed her chest with an arrow when she was distracted." she sighed. "It was beautiful."

The Queen's eyes widened in surprise, feeling an unexpected puncture in her heart.

 _('You can threaten me, try to bribe me, turn my life into a Tartarus, Hippolyta. But none of that will get me away from Diana. I'm going to marry her whether you like it or not.')_

"How could you murder your friend's wife?" she asked from a place far from reality.

"Unfortunately I didn't murder her, but I wish I had." she sighed. "It would certainly have been a more merciful fate."

"Where's Artemis?" she asked angrily. "What did you do with her?"

"Alkyone's friends have taken her." she said looking into her eyes. "Don't get me wrong, I've hated her since the first time I saw her, more than thirty years ago. But nobody deserves what Veritas will do with her."

"She will find a way to escape." said Hippolyta with barely restrained fury. "She's too stubborn to let anything murder her."

"They're not going to murder her." Io stood up. "They're going to destroy her."

Hippolyta looked up and down at the person in front of her, feeling the terror running through her body as she realized she could not recognize her, that all the people she thought she knew were really strangers. "How long have you been faking it?"

"Some have been faking for centuries." Io pursed her lips. "I've only been faking for thirty years, since Diana made the worst mistake of her life and fell in love with that garbage utterly unworthy of her." she sighed with relief. "It feels so good to tell the truth, to stop lying. I hate her so much... You can't imagine how much."

Hippolyta looked at her sadly. "The Gods will punish you for what you have done."

"No, they won't."

"Diana was your friend." the woman whispered in a voice that did not sound like hers. "How could you? How could you do this to her?"

"Diana grew up." whispered Io. "Diana became a woman and I got stuck in this little girl's body. And as time went by, everyone forgot that I'm not really a girl. Everyone except Diana." she sighed profoundly. "And then came Artemis."

The understanding hit her like a bucket of cold water. "You loved Diana."

She looked at the floor, shrugging. "It wasn't difficult... It never bothered me that she didn't return my feelings, because loving her from afar made me feel good anyway, or so I believed until Artemis came." she smiled sadly. "She never wanted to be with anyone other than that Bana, as if she had gone mad. And that made me feel... bad." she scratched her head. "I don't know if I felt jealousy, but I wouldn't have felt so bad if Diana had fallen in love with someone worthy of her." she turned to look at her with dull eyes. "You should have banned her from getting married."

"No." said the Queen with defiance. "If a traitor like you considers Artemis unworthy, then she is certainly an honorable person. My only mistake was to seek enemies among the Banas when they were in my own house."

Io crouched down so that her eyes met. "They hate you." she murmured. "Especially Alkyone and Menalippe, they have hated you for a long time more. It was evident to everyone except you, because your heart was so filled with Diana's love that you couldn't perceive hatred."

"Congratulations, then." said the queen in a dry voice. "You have deceived me, overthrown me and are going to turn Themiscyra into... What? A republic? My best wishes with that. There is a reason why the Roman republics never lasted too long, they were full of traitors."

"I don't know." she sighed. "Honestly, I don't know what will happen to Themiscyra now and I don't even care. That's Alkyone's bussiness, I won't be here to find out. I'll leave this island as soon as I can, to try to have a new life."

"You can't do it."

"Yes, I can." Io put her hand in her pocket, taking out a small metal object. "And you can too."

The blacksmith threw the object into the Queen's lap. Hippolyta tried to distinguish what it was in the dark, with effort, taking it in her injured hand. She leaned toward the lamp, trying to see better.

In her hands was a key.

"What is this?" she asked in amazement. "Are you trying to set me up?"

"It's the key of your chains, although I recommend that you don't take them off now if you want to survive." she rose to her feet, taking the lamp. "Philomela listened as you told Diana's guest a few days ago that you thought that drowning was the worst way to die. Alkyone is going to chain you and throw you into the sea. I'm giving you the opportunity to do what we all should do: get out from here, to start a new life. You have nothing here, nor your people, nor your Gods, nor your family... The best thing you can do is to leave."

"Why are you saving my life?" _It has to be a trap_. "You said you despised me."

Io gritted her teeth. "Do you remember when I arrived on the island? After all my family died in that tsunami? Antiope wanted to kill me because I was unable to hold a sword properly."

 _Antiope_. Her heart hurt, as it always did when she remembered her sister. "Maybe she should have."

"You stopped her." Io looked into her eyes. "You said I could stay if I learned to be useful otherwise. And I became a blacksmith, making swords I could never use." she sighed. "No, I haven't had a happy life here for a long time, but I've had a life and that's thanks to you. Most Amazons hate you, Hippolyta, but I don't. I just think you're an idiot."

Io turned and disappeared through the door. The Queen was left alone with her stormy thoughts.

* * *

 **The Condemned to Death**

 **23:59 PM**

The brilliance of the dozens of torches rivaled the moon itself, illuminating the water as if it were a macabre mirror. Hippolyta counted the boats around her, losing count after reaching forty. In her own boat, Charis was rowing and Alkyone was staring at her, not looking away for a second. Hippolyta looked up and saw her home in the distance. It was then that her heart really broke, when she realized she would not see it for a long time.

The bald Amazon finally gave the order to stop. Charis stopped rowing, and all the boats around her stopped as well. Hippolyta looked up at the many people in them, trying to identify the strangers with whom she had lived for centuries. The women she had considered her people.

She could not recognize any face.

Alkyone broke the silence by reaching out for her chains, making sure they were as tight as possible. Charis made sure the huge stone next to her was also well tied to the chains. Alkyone finished checking and looked at her for a long time, her strange dark blue eyes glowing. "You haven't said a single word."

Hippolyta did not open her mouth.

Alkyone cocked her head slightly. "Do you really have nothing to say?"

She looked at her in silence.

"I guess it's better this way." Alkyone shrugged, looking at all the Amazons around. "The faster you die, the faster Themiscyra may be reborn."

She backed up a little in the canoe and lifted the stone, with Charis's help. They both stood up in the canoe with it in their arms, without losing their balance at any moment. Hippolyta heard someone gasp.

"Do you have any last words?" asked Alkyone.

The Queen did not answer.

"Are you really going to die without saying a sentence that goes down in history?"

Silence.

"Well, I have something to tell you. Something I've always wanted to tell you." growled Alkyone. "Your granddaughter and your daughter have been looking for a traitor all this time, a wicked and selfish person who ruined their lives. Let me tell you who the traitor is: you are."

Hippolyta opened her eyes in surprise.

"Everyone knows the story of The Queen Hippolyta: the battles in which she fought, the glory she achieved, how she served the Gods, so much that they granted immortality to her and her people." she moaned. "Of course, everyone knows it. And everyone knows that time passed and the Amazons began to feel lonely, to want the only thing they didn't have: a family, love. The brave Queen Hippolyta begged the Gods to grant them that wish. And the Gods listened and took pity on their solitude, giving them a Princess. " Alkyone bit her lip. "A daughter." her voice broke and a couple of tears fell down her cheeks. "B-But only to her." she was crying openly now. "O-Only to you, Hippolyta."

Hippolyta felt a fist clench her heart, her own tears threatening to fall. Unable to avoid it, she looked back at the canoes around her, seeing tears on all the faces of those strangers.

"And it was bearable, you know?" her face was red with tears. "It was bearable for almost two thousand five hundred years. The isolation, the envy to see you embrace Diana, our duty to serve you as our Queen... It was bearable until your daughter fell in love and had a daughter." she had an arcade, as if she wanted to vomit. "I used to go into her room at night, when Lena was a baby. I looked at her and I felt so much hatred that I wanted to break her head against the floor, and at the same time I wanted to steal her, escape from the island like Philippus did. Raise her as if she were mine, for me to be her mother and not the stupid Diana. I tried to make her last five days enjoyable... And at the same time I wanted to kill her, haha." she shrugged. "We've given you our life, Hippolyta, and now we're going to get it back... Goodbye."

Alkyone and Charis threw the stone into the sea.

Hippolyta felt the pull of the chain and her body falling into the water with a **_SPLASH!_** It was not only her being that was filled with the freshness of the icy water, but also her soul. All the wounds of her body began to hurt thanks to the sea salt, and she closed her eyes, letting her body sink.

And then she pulled the key out of her mouth.

She held it between her teeth, taking her time to bring it to the end of the lock on her chains. **_Click._** Her hands were released, Hippolyta used them to take the key and free her feet as well. **_Click._**

The stone continued to fall to the bottom, but without dragging the one condemned to death. Being an expert swimmer, the former Amazon Queen kicked firmly to the right, away from the canoes and the torches.

Hippolyta bit her lip when her wounds began to hurt too much. The lack of air began to be mild discomfort, like the bite of a mosquito inside her lungs. _I have to keep swimming_. The former Queen could see under the water thanks to the moonlight _. I have to keep swimming._

The lack of air finally overcame her and she pulled her head out of the water, taking a deep breath of the desired air. Immediately her eyes searched for the canoes and torches. The Amazons looked like small insects, returning to the island that had been their home ( _prison, don't fool yourself_ ) for centuries, small points of light in the distance. None of them looked in her direction.

Hippolyta closed her eyes for a moment, letting herself gently rock through the sea, trying to enjoy the distant sound of the water hitting against the rocks for a few seconds more. The beautiful sound that reminded her of Antiope's voice, of Diana's laughter, of Lena fleeing from her with stones in her little hands. She felt a tear trickle down her cheek.

Then she plunged underwater again and kept swimming _. I have not lost my home yet_. The Queen clenched her teeth under the water. _I have to help Lena, I have to find Diana, I have to find out where they took Artemis._

And she only knew one person who could help her. _I have to get to Man's World and find Empress Cat._

* * *

 **Notes:**

 **Fotiá: Fire in Greek**

 **Viny: I love Lord Martin, but I could never kill my favorite characters, NEVAH**

 **Sinergy: Bonjour! Si oui, cela aura une fin heureuse. J'aime les fins heureuses et seulement écrire des choses qui ont une fin heureuse. Sinon, nous serions tous tristes :)**


	31. Ekphora

**It is my humanitarian duty to inform you that the time has come for me to become a useful member of my society.**  
 **In other words, I have started university :p**  
 **I will have to invest more time in numbers than in writing, I hope you can understand if I don't update as quickly as before.**

* * *

 **Just a normal tourist**

 **11:32 AM**

 ** _*Prack*_**

 _*'The emergency situation between the two Amazon countries has put the Bana-Mighdall Embassy on alert. Ambassador Alexa Hunt has had to return to her country at the last minute thanks to the announcement of the new government of Themiscyra, the self-appointed Circle. The execution of the Queen, Princess Diana, two American visitors and forty Bana-Mighdall Amazons...'*_

 ** _*Prack*_**

 _*A week after the catastrophe in National City: a total of 1,500 people were killed and 500 injured. Many of the injured have been transferred to the hospitals of Opal City and Gotham City, since the local hospitals...'*_

 ** _*Prack*_**

 _*'The school exploded in front of my eyes." *_ said an older woman _. "T-There were more than two hundred children in there, what kind of monster...?"*_

 ** _*Prack*_**

 _*'The polls for the upcoming elections aren't favorable to Marsdin after a mysterious alien set fire to a fifth part of National City. Her biggest opponent in the elections, the candidate of the Liberator Party, Ronald Dump, has made the following statement...'*_

 ** _*Prack*_**

 _*'The government simply can't ignore what happened in Themiscyra. There were two of our citizens there that night. The people demand justice and the devolution of the bodies...'*_

 ** _*Prack*_**

 _*"Authorities are still looking for Eliza Sylvia Danvers, Kara Danvers's adoptive mother, the latter better known as Supergirl."*_

 _"But why are they looking for her, Anton? She hasn't committed any crime."_

 _"Some would say that she has illegally appropriated an alien. The police just want to ask her some questions, I don't think..."*_

 ** _*Prack*_**

 _*'These aliens have always been a threat. It's a misfortune that this has had to happen to understand that only Earthlings should live on Earth.'*_ said the man with rare hairstyle. _*'If I am elected president, I will order to build a force field around the Earth. And the aliens will have to pay for it.'*_

 ** _*Prack*_**

Kara turned off the bar's television, watching the black screen for a few seconds.

Sighing deeply, the Kryptonian ran a hand through her dark brown wig, squeezing her eyes shut tightly behind her dark glasses. The distant melody of a Phil Collins' song reached her ears. Kara glanced at her apple cider again, wishing from the depths of her tormented heart that it was alien alcohol. She had never wanted to be drunk so much in her life.

The yellow sun warmed Metropolis like on a normal day, as if the planet had not suddenly become a dark and macabre place, full of wild monsters out of nightmares. As if hundreds of people had not died just a week ago, among which were ( _James, Mon-El_ ) people she knew and appreciated. People who ( _James Mon-El James Mon-El_ ) were having a normal day, working, walking, enjoying time with their families, until ( _James Mon-El James Mon-El my friends are dead_ ) someone decided it would not be like that anymore.

Kara felt as desperately helpless as when she realized she was alone in a strange world. _No, not alone. Kal left me, but Alex was always with me._

 _I must not believe what the news says._

 _Alex has to be okay somewhere._

 _She has to be._

She felt her eyes fill with tears.

 _I should have destroyed that damn island with my own hands._

Kara drank all the sweet apple cider in one gulp, listening to Phil Collins implore for just one more night. _Alex Winn Alex J'onn Alex M'gann Alex Maggie Alex Diana Artemis Alex Alex Alex Alex Alex where are you sister I know you're alive where are you? ( ***'Alexandra Jan Danvers's heartbeat has not been found'*** )_

A woman talking on the phone sat next to Kara at the bar. The blonde did not pay much attention to her, she was too focused trying not to breaking down in the middle of the bar, trying to keep at bay the black hole in her chest that was eating at her heart. The woman snarled at her phone.

"Get your sister the best psychiatrists, all the help you can. And I want you to send twenty people to Chicago right away. Beatrice Prior just called me, four boxes of EruditeCorp's Simulation Serum have disappeared. I want you to remove sky, sea, and Earth to find them. Keep me informed."

The brunette woman hung up without saying goodbye, asking the bartender for herbal tea instead of an alcoholic beverage. To Kara's surprise, the man brought it to her right away. The woman spread a hand so pale it looked almost gray and began to drink in silence.

Kara bit her lip, trying to find the right words without stuttering. It had never been so deadly difficult to speak in her life. "E-Excuse me."

The pale woman looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Do y-you know where there's a f-flower shop around here?"

"I'm not from here." she replied, looking away.

The potbellied bartender looked at Kara with compassion. "There's a flower shop two blocks away, right next to Diagon Alley."

Kara nodded. "Thank you."

The man took the remote control and turned on the television. There, Kara again saw the nasty Ronald Dump talking about his anti-alien policies. The bartender shook his head and wrinkled his mouth. "That man will never be president, it's totally ridiculous."

Kara shrugged and got up from her seat. She looked once more at the pale woman drinking her tea as she read a book. And then she left the bar following the bartender's instructions.

 _I can't postpone it any longer._

* * *

 **The Deceased's Friend.**

 **12:21 PM**

James's relatives had moved his remains to bury him in Metropolis.

Kara walked among the old and new tombstones, all the habitants of the necropolis presenting themselves with their name. Birds, beings that did not exist in her world, sang in the distance with their cheerful voices, sounds that drilled Kara's brain and made her want to use her heat vision on these inopportune animals.

Her eyes fell on all the tombstones, searching for the latest one. _Peverell... Fudge... Flamel... Scamander..._

 _...Olsen._

Kara stopped in front of the flower-filled tomb. There was a photograph of James in front of the tombstone, a recent one with a tie that Winn had given him. Kara did not remember that his smile was so bright ( _that was the first thing I liked about him, his pearly white teeth)_. The hole in her heart twisted a little more.

 _The loss, my old friend._

Kara left the bouquet of tulips next to the picture of James ( _he must have taken it himself_ ), sitting on the grass, her eyes fixed on the inscription. _James Bartholomew Olsen._

( _'You can't decide who is a hero and who is not'._ )

Kara caressed the grass at her feet, taking off her dark glasses to let the tears flow freely. "James..." Kara buried her nails in her palms until she drew blood. "I told you."

She sat on the grass for countless minutes, crying quietly and with serenity, as she had once heard Artemis say that warriors cry. _And besides, I have no more tears to spill... I'm dry._ Maybe in the future her body would produce more, when reality hit her. When James's name was no longer in his office, when it was Saturday and there no longer were game nights.

 _James Bartholomew Olsen. March 21, 1984-October 11, 2018._

For the moment, Kara's sadness was being replaced by a mountain of thick, hard, honest, maddening, murderous rage.

At first it was an insignificant sound, like the pounding of the woodpecker on the oak next to the entrance to the cemetery. But when the sound began to grow larger like the crescendo of an Italian song, Kara closed her eyes and sighed, not sure if she wanted to stay where she was or retire. She certainly wanted to leave, to return to the Fortress, to return to Lena even if it was only to see her expressionless face. _But James deserves better._

Lucy stopped a few feet behind her, her heartbeat racing with surprise. "Where the hell have you been?"

"In the..."

"Don't tell me, no one must know where you are." she growled. "...How much do you know?"

"Enough to know that Supergirl has gone from being a hero to a threat... again." Kara stroked her thumbs, still staring at the gravestone. "I've seen the newspapers. Ronald Dump has made many people blame me for what happened."

"It wasn't you."

"I know, Lucy." Kara stood up, unable to remain seated where her friend's remains lay. "You don't have to worry about me blaming myself: I know perfectly well, as clearly as my name, that what happened in National City was the fault of those people." she looked at Lucy for the first time. _Her hair is longer_. "They killed Mon-El and James, they nearly killed Lena, Cat and Carter. They have J'onn, Winn, M'gann and perhaps my sister, Maggie, Diana, and Artemis. They've destroyed... my whole life." she bit her lip, savoring her fresh tears. "I'm going to return them the favor." Lucy's eyes flashed. "I don't know how, Lucy, but I'll find them. Maybe Supergirl and Kara Danvers no longer exist, but Kara Zor-El..." she sobbed. "Kara Zor-El has nothing left to lose."

"Lena?"

"Lena's unconscious." she stroked her fake hair. "She's not hurt, she's just... asleep." Kara sighed. "She was their target, I'm sure." _And I have to destroy them before they try to kill her again._

"Kara..." her friend closed the distance and touched her shoulders. Kara saw fatigue in those wet woody eyes. "You don't have to do this alone, to find J'onn and the others we..."

"...must work as a team?" the blonde finished "I've become a outcast, Lucy. I'm a danger to everyone around me, and I won't let..." _I won't let you end up like James._

"You have to know that I've returned to National City. Someone has to run the DEO in J'onn's absence." said her friend sighing, looking away. "I just came here for the funeral... And because I thought maybe you would come."

"And are you offering to hide me, Lucy?"

She looked into her eyes. "You would be more useful hiding in the DEO than hiding who knows where."

"I don't plan to be hiding for long." Kara clenched her hand. "I won't find my friends and my family by hiding, Lucy, I'll only find them looking for them."

"What about your cousin?" Lucy crossed her arms, clenching her teeth. "Superman is not going to help you?"

"I've been exposed and they're chasing me, Lucy." Kara laughed sarcastically. "Kal must get away from me or his own loved ones will be in danger. He also has people to worry about, and these jerks have already shown what they're able of doing." she sighed. "My cousin will come if I need him, until then, we'd better keep a distance. The world has already lost Supergirl, they can't lose Superman too."

Kara turned to leave, squeezing Lucy Lane's arm slightly. _I've to get back to Lena as soon as possible_. However, her friend stopped her halfway.

"Kara, wait." she slipped her hand into her purse. "There's something I have to give you."

Lucy pulled out a small ceramic urn, holding it tightly in her trembling hands. For a moment Kara was confused, until the realization hit her like a bucket of cold water, adding more pain to her tortured heart.

Lucy bit her lip. "The file said the Daxamites burn their dead. I thought... I thought you'd know what to do with him."

 _Mon-El_

New tears streamed down her cheeks as she took the ceramic urn. "I'll give him a Daxamite funeral, as he would have wanted."

* * *

 **The funeral planner**

 **12:53 PM**

Kara ran from the outskirts of Metropolis at full speed, looking for a place accordant to what she needed to give the last goodbye to her friend. Sadly, she could not find any place with animals at a close distance. _C'mon, there must be some farm around here. I don't care how far I have to go._ Kara used her super hearing, still running as far from the city as possible. Five minutes later, she could hear the sound of cows eating in the distance. Sighing, the Kryptonian headed there.

The dairy farm was small and beautiful, a quiet and secluded place. _This is suitable for a funeral, Mon-El would have liked it._ Kara used her x-ray vision on the house. Two elderly people and three children were taking a nap in there. _Good_. Kara jumped the fence and walked to the pretty red barn, her heart feeling heavier with every step she took. _Mon-El had no one else. I have to do this for him._

Kara entered the barn, her nose overstimulating thanks to the large number of smells. The cows she had heard were eating hay in a manger, moving their little black tails gently. They looked at her and Kara could see that there was understanding in those deep black eyes full of wisdom, as if they knew what Kara had come to do, as if her hurt soul was visible to them.

Kara felt a tear slip from her left eye as she opened the urn with the ashes of Mon-El.

"Kara Zor-El of Krypton performs the funeral rites of Mon-El of Daxam, according to the sacred traditions of his planet of feeding the livestock with the ashes of the deceased. For the cycle of life continues, and our body is the food that gives life to the Children of the Earth. Even after death, we are useful to the others."

Kara quietly said the sacred words in Daxamite, despite the bitter tears that kept coming down her cheeks. _Mon-El was my friend_. She began to spread his ashes in the food of the cows. _He wasn't perfect, but he was my friend._ The cows continued eating unperturbed, oblivious to the solemn service they were rendering _. My friend..._ Kara sobbed, bile rising in her throat. A cow raised its eyebrow. _Two of my friends are dead and the others are missing._

"Mon-El, I met you when your pod crashed in National City years ago..." the cows continued eating the ashes. "It wasn't always easy, but we achieved the impossible: a boy from Daxam and a girl from Krypton becoming friends." **_*Muuuuuuu*_** "You had flaws, nobody is perfect. It wasn't easy to teach you to be a hero... But you were my friend." one of the cows sneezed on the manger. "Your murderers will be brought to justice."

A couple of tears fell on the ear of a cow.

"I promise."

* * *

 **Super-Worried**

 **2:23 PM**

The sun of the North Pole illuminated the ice, creating thousands of impossible colors that only Kara's eyes could distinguish. She waited until the cows had finished eating Mon-El's ashes before leaving the farm, her heart melancholically and deeply sad, but at least with her conscience clear, knowing that she had given her friend the funeral he would have wanted. _Mon-El, you didn't deserve to die alone. You deserved to be happy._ Two tears streamed down her cheeks. _Two of my friends are dead because someone decided to destroy my life._

She gritted her teeth. _I will find them and make them pay, I swear. James, Mon-El, I swear I'll get justice for you._

The Kryptonian landed at the Fortress's entrance, stirring the snow from the ground to get the key. Kara took the bright piece of dwarf star and put it in the lock, opening the door with a raucous **_Burrrrr_**. Kara went in quickly, taking off her wig and dark glasses and leaving them on one of the pillars, feeling the chill decrease immediately.

She was greeted by the solemn faces of her aunt and uncle, much more serious than Kara remembered. _I have never liked these statues_. They did not look like the people she fondly remembered. _Uncle Jor-El wasn't that tall. Aunt Lara never frowned, she always had a quiet smile... Except when she knew our world was dying._

But then again, she never enjoyed being in the Fortress of Solitude. Too many memories that only served to hurt her. A few beams of sunlight managed to pass through the glass, illuminating the strange face of her Aunt Lara. "Kelex."

The Kryptonian robot appeared on her left. _"Kara Zor-El?"_

"Has there been any change in Lena's condition?"

 _"Lena Luthor's state remains stable and unharmed."_ replied the robot, getting closer.

"Have you come to any conclusions about why she's not waking up?" Kara put her hands on her hips.

 _"Kelex has not found any answers in her physical state. The subject Lena Luthor has not suffered any physical damage, the reasons for her unconsciousness are unknown."_

Kara rested her hand on the glass wall, feeling the temptation to hit it just to find out if she could break it or not. "Scans her brain again."

 _"Immediately, Kara Zor-El."_

"And Kelex."

 _"Kara Zor-El?"_

"Her name is Lena Luthor of Themiscyra." Kara advanced through the door. "Her family loved- they love her. She decided she wants to use her full name."

 _"Subject Identity Changed: Lena Luthor of Themiscyra."_

Kara walked with firm steps toward the aisle behind Kelex. The crystals reflected the light on her blonde hair, giving Kara a distorted image of herself. _The person who is walking doesn't look like Supergirl_. Kara walked past the door of Kal-El's bedroom, past the door of his Memory Room, past the Central Data door and by the door to her own bedroom, the one she had never used or wanted to use. Finally, Kara arrived at the infirmary of the Fortress of Solitude, receiving the glow of both the light filtered by the crystals and the artificial blue light emitted by the walls.

The infirmary was able to house twenty people with all that Kryptonian medicine had been able to offer on Krypton before its end. Only the first bed was lit, emitting a soft pink light. Lena was sleeping ( _she's not sleeping Kara she's unconscious she hasn't woken up in a week Lena please wake up soon I need you love I need you I need you_ ), her face harmoniously calm, breathing softly. There was a panel at her side, where the computer showed the data of her state written in Kryptonese. Kara read the words that told her what she already knew: Lena was physically well, but still she did not wake up.

 _Patience, Kara._ She stroked the unconscious woman's arm. _She's going to wake up soon. She just needs to rest, to take her time._

She did not know how to tell her what had happened when she woke up.

"Hi Potsticker." Kara caressed her cheek, kissing her forehead gently. "I'm back, I'm sorry I took so long... I went to see James." she took her hand. "I also gave Mon-El a dignified funeral, in Daxam's way." she sighed. "He would have wanted it that way."

Kara climbed into the bed, resting her head on Lena's warm belly, not letting go of her hand. "They're alive." Kara laced her fingers together. "I can feel it in my soul, Lena, they're alive somewhere out there, and we have to look for them." the stress ball in her stomach twisted. "I feel it in my soul... They're alive." Kara kissed her hand. "We won't be alone for long; we will find them. And we will find who caused all this... But for that I need you wake up." she caressed her wrist. "You're a genius, Lena. No doubt you would know what to do now... Because I don't know where to start looking for Alex."

Kara closed her eyes in silence for a few minutes, enjoying the warmth of her girlfriend's body, stroking her ribs. An irresistible desire to sleep filled her body. _Alex, wherever you are, I hope you're well. I miss you._

"You have to be fine." she whispered against Lena's stomach. Wiping her tears, she sat up a little. "Kelex."

The robot immediately came to the infirmary. _"Kara Zor-El?"_

"Bring me the familial sphere of the House of El."

 _"Kara Zor-El has no access to the sphere. Only the head of the family has."_

Kara frowned with irritation. "Kelex, according to Krypton's laws, how do you choose the head of a House?"

 _"The eldest descendant holds the charge."_

"I am fourteen years older than Kal-El. I'm the one who truly remembers my House, my parents, my uncles, and my grandfather." she replied, trying to control her anger. "According to the laws of Krypton, I'm the head of the House of El."

 _"But Kal-El..."_

"He's my little cousin." she growled. "Bring me the sphere."

Kelex quickly disappeared through the door, Kara trying to control her anger so as not to accidentally hurt Lena's hand in hers. The robot returned thirteen seconds later, with the familial sphere of the House of El in its mechanical hand. Kara felt thirteen again when she looked at it: small, blue and red, bright as a thousand mirrors reflecting light. Kara took it in her hands, smiling as she remembered her grandfather's words, one year before his death and three before the end of the planet.

 _'This sphere has the names of the members of our House'_ Sygn Jor-El had said _. 'All members of the House of El are here, Kara. Our bodies may die, but our soul lives on in the new generations of our family. One day I will die, but I will be alive in you, as your fathers'._

 _He had to know._ She thought with a mixture of sadness and disappointment. _There's no way he didn't know we were dying. There's no way he didn't know that his youngest son had created a genocidal weapon._

Kara pressed the sphere in her hand.

 _My family let us die. My mother was so blinded by her faith in the Codex that she sacrificed her own twin._ She bit her lip. _Aunt Astra..._

Kara opened the sphere, being momentarily blinded by the brightness. Hundreds of small, interconnected faces appeared in the room, circling like butterflies on a spring day. Kara could not help but smile when her eyes met the smiley face of her Aunt Lara, much more familiar than the statue's. She and Kal-El were floating near the surface of the sphere, with considerable space around their static bodies.

"This space here is where my descendants will be, Lena. If I ever have them, of course." the blonde took her hand, stroking her thumb. "My grandfather used to be proud of our family. I also was; thinking of them made me feel better when I missed my home... Until I knew the truth." she sighed, filling the void inside her with melancholy. "My father created a genocidal weapon to kill those who were considered as threats. My mother's blind faith in a system that didn't work was the cause of our disgrace... My mother... Do you know one thing, Potsticker?... I think I could forgive her for everything she did... Yes, I could forgive her for making a mistake trusting the Codex... for leaving me alone... But I don't know if I could forgive her for what she did to my Aunt Astra." silent tears fell down her cheeks. "F-Fort Rozz and my mother ended up destroying her... Lena, you would understand it better than anyone: a sibling is sacred, a sibling shouldn't be betrayed under any circumstances." Kara wiped her tears. "Sphere."

 _*'Kara Zor-El?'*_

"I want you to add a person to the House of El."

 _*'Enter the data, please.'*_

"My sister, Alex Danvers-El."

Alex's name appeared next to her image, under her mother's solemn face. Kara felt better to see the name even though it did not have an image yet. _But the meaning is the same, the House of El is not extinct, it will have better members from now on._

She stared, with a small seed of hope, at the other empty space next to her own image. She looked back at her girlfriend's sleeping face.

"Some day, 'Lena Zor-El' will be written here." she laughed just a little, her eyes filling with tears. "I don't think there's enough space to write 'Lena Luthor Zor-El of Themiscyra'."

* * *

Our love is like watching the

sea being drawn by

the moon. We don't need to understand how it

works, we settle for

knowing that it is something

super wonderful

* * *

 _Lena kept her eyes closed in a tornado of millions of winds. Distant voices whispered in unfamiliar languages, slight tickles ran through her body, as if hundreds of ants were walking on her skin. The air had become thick, heavy; her lungs had to work twice as hard to breathe._

 _Lena did not want to open her eyes._

 _Lena was terrified to open her eyes._

 ** _Open your eyes._**

 _"No..." she murmured, feeling her hair fly in the tornado around her. "Get me out of here, I have to go home."_

 _The winds stopped. The air remained static, as if Lena was at the bottom of the ocean surrounded by mysterious waters. A hollow feeling of fear settled in her chest, a distant emotion as if she were in the middle of a dream._

 ** _Open your eyes and do not look back._**

 _Lena opened her eyes, receiving the blinding halo of light mixed with the darkness._

 _And the first thing she saw was a colossal bar of an impossible color between black and green. And beyond the bars,_

 _darkness._

 _And beyond the darkness,_

 _a circle formed by smaller spheres._

 _Lena walked over to the bar, feeling the inevitable, desolate feeling of a bird trapped in a cage. The texture of these bars was so light that she could barely feel them, as if her hands had fallen asleep in a container of cold water. The spheres in the distance glowed in a blue light, with small dots of light in a red-like color going on and off every few seconds._

 _"What is this?"_

 ** _It is what I see all the time._**

 _Lena shuddered._

 ** _Do not turn away._** _The voice said quietly. **This is not your mind, Gap. I can not take another form here.**_

 _"I'm in your mind." Lena had to hold on to the huge bar to remain on her feet. "I'm in the fucking mind of a fucking God, I'm in the fucking mind of a fucking God. Fuck, fuck, fuck..."_

 ** _I told you before that I am not a god. Those inferior beings feed on vanity and blood, do not offend me by comparing myself with them._**

 _"Then what are you?"_

 ** _I have existed since before living beings began to name all things. What I am, does not have a name that you can understand._**

 _Lena gasped, desperately wanting to turn and see her interlocutor, but knowing from the bottom of her soul that something very bad could happen if she did. "What are those spheres?" Lena counted them quickly, there were fifty-two._

 ** _That is the Existence created by my brother, so long ago that I can not remember. Time is different in this place, Gap._**

 _"The Multiverse." Lena slowly dropped to her knees, looking at the spheres. "What I'm seeing is the Multiverse."_

 ** _The different versions of life created by my brother._** _The voice said slowly. **All my work cruelly manipulated.**_

 _Lena could not look away from the spheres, shining in the distance like planets made of sapphires with moons of ruby. The Multiverse was an overwhelming spectacle, something Lena was sure would drive her crazy if she watched it for a long time. "What are those red dots?"_

 ** _Gaps._** _The voice said with a hint of sadness. **Those red lights that go on and off are my poor gaps, being born and being killed quickly by the followers of my brother. All except you.**_

 _"No." Lena snarled. "I have nothing to do with the problems of the Multiverse. You have the wrong person."_

 ** _It is normal for you to be scared._**

 _"Scared? I'm totally terrified!" exclaimed Lena, unable to contain herself. "I've never been so afraid in my fucking life! I just want to go home to my family!"_

 ** _There won't be a family you can go back to if the followers of my brother catch you, Gap. He will not allow any chance of losing his control. Just look at that poor world that is dying._**

 _Lena looked up at one of the spheres at the top of the circle. Its color was less bright than the others, and with each passing second it became more and more opaque._

 _('He will destroy Earth-15 if you're not dead before the new moon'.)_

 _"N-No..." Lena covered her mouth with her hands. "They are dying! Millions of people are dying!"_

 ** _A whole universe._**

 _"Don't stay there!" she almost gave in to her urge to turn. "You said that you're more powerful than a God! Do something! Anything!"_

 ** _And what can I do if I have been locked in this prison since the beginning of time? I can not save them from my brother, no matter how hard I try._**

 _Lena felt tears stream down her cheeks, cold and frightening as if she had become a ghost._

 _A complete universe, killed. And it was her fault_

* * *

 _The short woman was blonde and visibly pregnant._

 _"Hello." she said. Kara felt that her voice transmitted safety. "I know I'm not your mother, Kara, nor do I pretend to be... What do you think of becoming friends? My name is Catherine Grant and you're staying with me. My son Adam is inside playing, do you want to meet him?"_

 _Little Kara Zor-L nodded timidly in silence._

* * *

 **Powergirl**

 **The last day of Earth-15**

Kara Zor-L sighed in frustration and ran a hand through her short hair, taking off her glasses and dropping them next to her boss's agenda. She did not know how to arrange Ms Danvers's time so she could both attend her 9:00 PM conference and dine with Margaret at the same time. _Just great, she will be angry again._ The Kryptonian was considering changing the schedule of Alexandra's dinner with her parents when Carter came into the room, yawning and scratching his head.

"Mmm, what time is it?" he asked, sitting down on the couch.

"Almost 3:00 PM, I thought you'd sleep forever and someone would have to wake you with a kiss" replied the blonde without taking her eyes from her papers.

"You're still working?" Carter yawned again. "C'mon Kar! it's Sunday and it's raining. Why don't we play something?"

"Because I have to work, Carter. Maybe later."

"You should relax more, or ask Ms Danvers for an increase... and buy new video games."

 _This kid is always thinking about video games_. Kara Zor-L sighed. "Don't even think that I'm going to cover for you when Catherine gets back from the hospital and sees that you haven't done your homework, Carter."

The teenager turned on the television, zapping between the boring news.

 _*'Lucas Carr and James Olsen's wedding day...'*_

 _*'The criminal Winslow Schott Jr is well known for the murder of...'*_

 _*'Supermodel Margaret Danvers promotes her new line of lingerie...'*_

 _*'In other news, yesterday President Luthor inaugurated the Memorial Hospital Lutessa Lena Luthor, in honor of his sister, who is currently quadriplegic and needs...'*_

Carter finally found an interesting channel, a replay of old episodes of The 99. Stretching on the couch, the boy started watching television without thinking twice about his obligations. Karen sighed.

"Okay, let's make a deal." the Kryptonian stood up. "If you finish your homework before Catherine come back, I'll buy you a pizza and play AbysmalKombat with you."

"Yay!" the boy got up from his chair and ran to his room.

Karen shook her head. _This kid is a little manipulator._ Deciding to take a break, Karen went to the refrigerator, was briefly distracted by the photograph Catherine took at her graduation, and opened the door to take a plate of potstickers that Carter was even forbidden to look at. The Kryptonian began to eat them as she distractedly looked through the kitchen window.

It was a disappointment to realize that the weather had not improved. The clouds seemed even darker, if that was possible. A few rays illuminated the sky in the distance. The smell of rain was in the air, on the earth, impregnating everything as if absorbed by anything alive. _It looks like we're going to have a big storm._

 ** _*Ding Dong*_**

Karen put her potstickers on the table and went to open the door. There, a skinny man with messy blond hair was holding a package in his hands. "Good evening, I have a package for Karen Starr from Adam Grant, is she at home?"

"It's me." Karen replied, discreetly using her x-ray vision to peer into the box. _Is it something made of silver?_

"Sign here please."

She did so and the man handed her the package, smiling slightly. Kara Zor-L re-entered the apartment and sat down on the couch, the carton box on her lap. _If it's a joke, I'm going to set your boxers on fire, Adam, and not even Catherine will be able to stop me._ She opened the package, removing the small polystyrene balls. Her eyebrows arched when she saw the contents. _Adam has sent me a medallion?_

There, at the bottom of the box, a silver medallion gleamed slightly in the light of the lamp. Karen took it in her hands, watching the beautiful gold engraving on the reverse. _This is a Greek Goddess... What was her name? Those Greeks really had imagination._ There was even a letter from Adam, in his own handwriting. _This is rare._

She opened the letter.

 _K:_

 _I found this surfing yesterday. A wave almost dragged me, but I think this gave me luck. And I don't know anyone who needs more luck than you with those two jobs you have ;)_

 _See you at dinner on Friday._

 _A._

 _Why did he write me a letter and not a tex-? Stop there, Kara. It's impossible to understand Adam's mind, it's like a trip to Wonderland... Well, at least it's a pretty thing._ Karen shrugged and slipped the medallion on her neck, letting the cold metal touch her skin. _I wonder where Adam found it... I think it's better not to know._

 _*Bzzz Bzzz*_

Her cellphone vibrated in her pocket. The blonde took it and saw that she had a new message from Catherine. _Where is she? It's late._

 _MedicalMogul: Did Carter do his homework? D:_

The Kryptonian sighed.

 _ThebrightestStar: It cost me a pizza. Wher r u? D u've much to do b4 u gt home? How was ur surgery?_

 _MedicalMogul: As always, I saved the unwise millenial who ate a bullet. Every day they are born with less brain._

 _MedicalMogul: I'm on my way. If you're going to order a pizza, ask for a salad for me._

"Salad." Karen shuddered. "I don't understand how she doesn't starve."

 ** _*PppOoOOW BrOoOOW*_**

The noise was so great that the Kryptonian almost dropped her phone. The light went out, the sound of rain pounding furiously against the roof of the apartment.

 _"Kara!"_

"Easy, Carter!" shouted the blonde. "It's just a storm! I'll go make sure everything is fine!"

Quickly, Karen ran to her room, putting on her suit in the dark. _That sounded like a lightning bolt._

Powergirl removed a lock of her short hair from her eyes and walked to the window, rising to the sky under the pouring rain.

National City looked strange under the gray light filtered through the rain clouds, as if it were a different, unknown city. Powergirl flew toward the direction the lightning had fallen. To her concern, the lightning had fallen near D-Corp, forming a black crater a few feet away. _Rao..._

Powergirl landed in the street, completely drenched from head to toe. The crater had a depth of three meters, gray smoke emanating from the hole and being disintegrated by the raindrops. _This isn't normal..._

 ** _*PppOoOOW BrOoOOW*_**

Karen heard the next lightning bolt strike a building in the city center. Feeling a chill run down her back, Powergirl jumped into the air and flew to the crash site. _Damn._ The lightning had struck an antenna and the building was burning, despite the torrential rain. Powergirl quickly flew in circles around it, extinguishing the flames, taking advantage of the rain. _That was close. I have to stay here and keep my eyes open in case there's another ra-_

 ** _*PAAFFF*_**

The next ray impacted her head.

Powergirl felt her body fall, fall, fall from the heights like a wounded bird. The colors faded around her, mingling in confusing shapes of sinister appearance. The blonde felt every bone in her body complaining as she hit the ground, her lungs expelling all the air they contained.

Her eyes locked on the stormy sky. _Rao's fuckin sh..._

"Aaahah!"

A sense of rigidity gripped her body, as if her arms and legs had become rubber and had been nailed to the ground. The water of the rain fell with violence **_*Pap*_** on her skin, hundreds of small **_*Pap*_** explosions taking place all over her body. Kara heard the footsteps of a person advancing toward her in the middle of the street, light steps as if a spirit had decided to observe her closely.

"W-Who's there?"

 ** _*Pap*_**

 ** _*Pap*_**

 ** _*Pap*_**

Kara groaned and made futile attempts to move again. "I warn you..."

 ** _*Pap*_**

 ** _*Pap*_**

 ** _*Pap*_**

 ** _*Pap*_**

"What's going on? Who's the-? _AaaaAhhhaHaHAAAAAA!_ "

The medallion on her clavicle began to burn her skin, as if it were a star slowly calcining her chest. Powergirl's eyes filled with tears of surprise. _I can't move my head. I can't see who's there. What's going on Oh dear Rao my chest hurts so much that what's is going on who..._

 ** _Mjm... Only you will live, you can still be useful._**

Karen gasped. "Who are you?"

A terrible pain pierced her body as if a burning Kryptonite dagger was slowly sinking into her chest. Powergirl let out a gasp that soon turned into a scream, the feeling of being hurt as new as it was terrifying. _The medallion_. She managed to see a small cloud of smoke rising from her chest, her burned skin aching so much that Powergirl felt her impotence mingle with fear.

"L-Let me go."

 ** _No_**

"What do you want?"

 ** _I want what is mine._** Listening to that voice was like listening to fingernails scratching a blackboard. **_And you will help my Truth to return it to me: my tranquility._**

 _You're crazy._

 ** _Think that again and I will rip your heart out._**

Kara realized with horror that this thing could hear her thoughts.

 ** _I will have mercy on you: I will not make you watch. But you will listen as every person in your world dies._**

 _Don't do it_ , she thought fighting the pain that was mixed with the rain. _You can't do it._

 ** _I am the Creator, and the life of every living being is mine to do what I want with it._**

 ** _Of course I can do it._**

 ** _And you are going to listen._**

 ** _I will take my time for you to hear every cry, every death, for the next few hours._**

Kara Zor-L felt a piece of Kryptonite inside her throat, the absolute horror growing in her soul.

 ** _Anyway, I never liked this universe._**

* * *

 **Ekphora: as was mentioned before, the word means funeral rite.  
Raven belongs to DC Comics  
Sygn Jor-El is a combination of the two names that Kara's grandfather has had in the comics: Sygn-El and Jor-El Senior.  
** **Powergirl (Kara Zor-L/Karen Starr) belongs to DC Comics**


	32. Superwoman

_The first thing Maggie felt was the heat, a warmth as thick as if she were on a tropical island. The air was virgin, as pure as Themiscyra's. Each of the hairs on her body were bristling, like a cat about to jump on a mouse. She swallowed and was drowning in her own saliva. And then she opened her eyes._

 _There was grass beneath her feet and a cracked ceiling over her head, through which an exorbitant amount of light entered. In front of her, three women looked at her with indifference engraved on their faces made of stone._

 _(This is a dream). The statues were as beautiful as they were terrifying, dark beings in the overwhelming clarity of the (where am I?). Maggie stepped back, noticing that there were Greek letters at the foot of the statues. (This damn language only means trouble). She looked around, trying to see everything her eyes could take in in the overwhelming light. The place was old, resembling those ruins of Greek temples she had once seen on National Geographic. The sky was white through the hole in the ceiling. The vegetation climbed wildly through the walls, the monster of time slowly devouring the building._

 _There was a yellow blur in the middle of the glow, a few feet away. (What is that?) Maggie narrowed her eyes, trying to see better. Clenching her teeth, the detective began to move slowly, hardening her fists in case it was necessary to use them._

 _Maggie noticed the blonde head of a girl sitting on a stone surface._

 _"Kara?"_

 _The face turned to see her. The blonde's eyes were blue as a tropical sea._

 _"Kara!"_

 _Maggie began to close the distance between them. There was Kara, sitting on the stone edge of a huge dark well, without her glasses and her face as serious as the statues. Her hands rested harmoniously on her lap, on the hem of her white dress._

 _"Kara." Maggie finally reached her, her eyes still staring at her. "Kara, we're fine. We're trapped in the Underworld, Diana and Alex..."_

 _Maggie stopped when she realized that was not Kara._

 _There was no physical sign, nothing different in the National City heroine. But Maggie **knew it,** she saw it. The blonde woman in front of her was not her girlfriend's sweet sister, because the eyes of the Kara she knew would never shine with such hatred as those of that **thing.**_

 _"You're not Kara."_

 _She stood up. "And you're not Maggie."_

 _Her immediate reaction was to take the gun she did not have, a useless action before the Kryptonian pounced on her and lifted her by the throat._

 _Maggie only saw sapphire eyes before being thrown into the black hole._

 _The world disappeared around her, falling uncontrollably, a scream of surprise mixed with fear escaping her throat. Her heart fell to her pelvis, the darkness mingling with impossible figures of a smoky color, as she kept falling, falling, falling into a spiral of infinite darkness._

 _The confusing figures began to move before her eyes, to fly around her like hands trying to reach her. (This is a dream this is a dream this is-). One of the figures took on the appearance of a woman with a bright circle on her chest. Around her, two smaller figures moved, two bats fighting to death, their screams echoing on the walls of the well (this is a dream). The biggest bat killed the smallest, launching to attack the figure of the woman of smoke._

 _(This is not real...)_

 _Maggie crashed into the bottom of the well and the unbearable pain showed her otherwise._

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **?:?**

Maggie heard her own gasp like a shrill sound, entering through her ears and hurting her eardrums. That's how she knew she was not asleep, or dead. And the feeling of moisture all over her body reminded her of where she was. _In a place where no one can rescue us._ She rubbed her eyelids, cursing softly as a few grains of sand entered her right eye. She had never felt so uncomfortable in her life. _I have sand up in my underwear._ Sighing, she sat up on the beach.

The worst thing about being trapped in the Underworld was not having a sense of time. Maggie felt they had been there for weeks, despite the evidence that said otherwise: Alex's insistence on climbing the ravine and Diana's semi-unconscious state. _At least we're not hungry or thirsty._ The detective turned around to check Diana's condition. In the last thirty-six hours ( _at least I think so_ ), Diana had awakened three times, remaining conscious for only a few seconds each time. _Like a newborn_ , the detective thought sadly. Diana was still in the same condition she was in before Maggie went to sleep: sleeping on Alex's jacket, trembling slightly, the sweat of her body mingling with the dampness of the living ones. _Alex said she would recover, she just need time._ But Maggie had no idea how much time had passed and that was starting to worry her even more. _I never thought I'd miss my paperwork._

The water of the Cocytus River was calm, so still that Maggie could have used it as a mirror to confirm her deplorable condition. The river was almost hypnotic; if she concentrated enough she could hear the distant voices of the ghosts on its banks. _They haven't come again._ Maybe the dead were not too interested in them, Maggie did not want to waste her neurons on that. _Aliens, Amazons, Gods, ghosts, I'm just a fucking detective I need a break... Well, a girl can dream._

She grunted and stood up, doing her best to remove the sand from her body. Her gaze fell briefly on Diana's body, her heart shrinking as she saw the almighty Wonder Woman so fragile, like a wounded little bird. _And she still doesn't know that her wife..._

 _Fuck._ Maggie bit her knuckle in frustration. _Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. I never thought I'd want to see that asshole again._

She turned her head toward the wall of the ravine, smooth as the surface of a stone table. Infinity rose up there, whiter than light itself. ( _A white circle shining on the silhouette of a woman of smoke, an animal with wings and teeth pouncing on her_ ). Maggie blinked a couple of times. _Stupid nightmare._

She saw the figure of Alex advancing slowly toward her, her eyes furious as she looked towards the top of the ravine. Maggie sighed from the depths of her weariness. Her girlfriend looked as wet as if she had just plunged into the river, each and every one of her muscles clenched as if preparing to attack someone. Maggie watched her bite her lip and clench her fists. _She can't continue like this._ Alex's gaze met hers.

Her girlfriend let out a cry of frustration and kicked the sand with rage.

"Alex?" asked Maggie, trying to keep her concern from being noticed in her voice.

Her girlfriend looked at her with bright eyes. "This is the fifth time I've ended up here."

"What do you mean?"

"No matter where I go, I always end up here again." she sighed, rubbing her wet hair. "I've gone left and right... I always end up here after a few minutes." she looked with hate at the ravine. "Damn Underworld, damn Amazons, If only we could climb..."

"We'll find a way out of here."

Alex did not even look at her. "Maybe if I use the dagger to carve at the stone..."

Maggie felt a pang of irritation. "Danvers, you know we can't get out of here climbing."

"And how shall we get out then, eh? Will we wait for a harpy and fly away?" she snarled. "I have to find Kara, I have to make those psycho-bitches pay, and if that wasn't enough-" Alex approached Maggie, touching the wound on her right arm that had been made with the Dagger of Hera. "I have to find a way to get you back to normal."

Maggie took her hand firmly. "That's not a priority right now."

"Maggie, you're fucking immortal!" her eyes widened so much that they seemed about to fall out of their sockets. "We don't know what side effects that stupid Dagger might have caused you. We have to get out of here, find Kara, and give you a complete review."

"Well, we won't get out this way." Maggie sighed, trying not to lose her temper. The last thing she needed was a fight. "Akila said we have to get to The Tartarus."

"Oh, of course, Akila." Alex pursed her mouth. "I admit we were wrong about her, but you haven't seen her since we woke up, and I haven't seen her once. Are we really going to follow the advice of a ghost who only appears when she wants to?"

"That ghost is a ghost because she saved my life, Danvers." _she's dead because of me._ "It's thanks to her that Diana is alive too. I understand that you're worried about Kara, but if we want to get out of here, we have to..."

Maggie's eyes widened in horror, her tongue sticking to her palate as she watched a spot behind Alex.

"Maggie?"

"Oh... my... God" _Can't be._

"Ma-?"

She ignored Alex and moved forward, her feet leaving no footprints in the sand. _Can't be, can't be, can't be._ The dark-skinned man was sitting placidly in the sand, his white shirt neatly ironed, staring at the river in front of him as if he were lost in thought.

"Olsen!"

The man turned, confirming that it was the photographer. James's eyes widened in surprise when he saw Maggie advancing toward him, followed closely by an alarmed Alex.

 _"Detective Sawyer?"_

"James!" Maggie did not recognize her own voice. "No, you can't be here, you can't..."

 _"I'm dead."_ said the ghost in an emotionless voice, but with a certain softness. _"I've been dead for a week."_

Maggie's throat dried up as if she had not drunk water in a week. _It can't be._ She opened her mouth a couple of times to speak, taking several seconds to find the words. "...It's impossible." _It. Can't. be._

 _"Well, you're a detective."_ the ghost shrugged. _"You're seeing the evidence in front of you."_

"Maggie!" Alex's worried voice seemed to bring her back to reality. Maggie turned to look at her, her pupils dilated and her body, if possible, even more tense. "Maggie... Who are you talking to?"

The detective gulped, her terror mingling with her confusion. "Alex, I-I'm sorry, James..."

"Maggie, there's nobody there." Alex took her arm, squeezing it with perhaps a little too much force. "Mags, Babe, I'm sorry I was so grumpy. C'mon, I think you need to sit down."

"But what-? Alex, can't you see James sitting right there?" Maggie pointed to the ghost. James frowned.

Alex rubbed her shoulders gently. "James is at home, Maggie. He must be with Kara right now, wondering where we are. I think the fatigue is bringing out the worst in us, you should..."

 _"Maggie."_ she turned to James. _"I think she can't see me."_

The detective pursed her lips, interrupting her girlfriend's worried speech. "Alex" the Agent closed her mouth. "Listen, I haven't gone mad... James is here, next to us. He's talking to me like Akila did before."

Alex sighed. "Maggie, there's nobody there."

"That's because you can't see him." Maggie spoke quietly, trying to convey security. "I don't know why, but James is next to you and you can't see him."

Alex's expression was still incredulous, as if she did not know what to think.

The photographer looked at her sadly. _"Tell her her first coming out was interrupted by a huge ball of energy that appeared above the table at Thanksgiving."_

 _None of this makes any sense._ "James says your first coming out was interrupted by a... energy ball or something."

 _"At Thanksgiving."_

"At Thanksgiving."

Alex's face contracted as if someone had hit her in the stomach, her lips parted in a perfect circle. "J-James?"

The photographer smiled sadly.

"Oh, my God." Alex bit her lip hard, her eyes searching for something they could not see. "Oh my God, James, what happened? How? When?"

 _"Tell her almost a week ago."_

Maggie bit her lip. "Almost a week ago."

 _"Someone attacked National City. My car exploded."_

Maggie looked at him in horror.

"Maggie?"

"He says someone attacked the city."

 _"Kara was fighting an alien, but it was a distraction."_ he pursed his lips. _"The city started to explode. I was in my car when it happened."_

"Kara was being distracted by a hostile alien, and... and the city started to explode." Maggie shook her head, feeling a stone in her stomach. "No, no, no, wait, a week ago Kara was with us, this can't have happened a week ago."

 _"It was a week ago."_ he said firmly.

"James, we've only been here for two days."

 _"You're alive."_ he said looking at Alex. _"You shouldn't be here, maybe that's why you don't have the same sense of time."_

Alex bit her lip, looking at Maggie sadly. "Has it been a week?"

Maggie did not know how to say yes, so she just nodded.

"James..." Alex looked a little farther to the right from where he really was. "What happened to Kara?"

 _"I don't know... I died before I saw the end. But neither she nor Lena are among the people who died."_

"James says he doesn't know what happened next, but he hasn't seen Kara or Lena around here."

"Someone else...?"

 _"Mon-El"_ he said dryly. _"But he couldn't stay here, because this isn't his world. He said it has to be a very specific and rare case if an alien goes to an Underworld from another world after his death."_

"James says that Mon-El died too, but that he's not here, but in Daxam's Underworld."

"J'onn? M'gann? Winn?"

James shook his head.

"They're not here."

"James..." Alex asked his friend's ghost. "Have you seen Artemis?"

 _"The only person I know I've ever seen here is Mon-El, before he left."_

"He says no."

Alex sighed in relief, as if a mountain had been lifted from her shoulders. "Menalippe lied, she has to be alive somewhere."

 _"Maggie..."_ James pointed behind them.

When Maggie turned, her eyes found that Diana had woken up. _Diana?_ The brunette was crawling slowly to her right, where Maggie and Alex had left her armor. And the swords.

"Alex."

The Agent turned to see the point Maggie was looking at. Her eyes widened with surprise and concern, advancing immediately to where the brunette was crawling toward the swords. "Diana?" the wounded woman continued to crawl. "Diana, what are you doing? You're hurt, you shouldn't move."

Maggie glanced briefly at James for the last time. The photographer watched her with quiet eyes, eyes in which floated emotions that Maggie could not understand. "Don't go, James." the detective began to move behind Alex.

The Amazon had reached their few belongings in the sand, pale and slightly trembling, but without a single evidence of pain. Diana reached out to take the sword with the 'A' in its hilt.

"Diana, what are you...?"

"Where's Lena?" the Amazon interrupted Alex. "Lena...?"

"Lena and Kara left the island before the disaster." Maggie hastened to say. "Diana, you're still hurt. What are you doing?"

"This sword belongs to Artemis, I gave it to her." the brunette looked at her with tortured eyes. "Where's she?"

Alex and Maggie exchanged a brief glance. The taller woman crouched forward to be at the same height as Wonder Woman. "Diana..."

The brunette let out a sound between a groan and a gasp.

"No, no, Artemis isn't here, that means she's alive."

"That doesn't mean anything." two tears fell down her cheeks. "Missy is Egyptian, A-Alex. If she died, she wouldn't go to the Tartarus of Hades, b-but to the Duat of Anubis."

 _Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck._ Maggie's throat contracted. "B-But Akila was here."

"Akila died a short distance from the river, her soul must have been attracted to the Cocytus immediately." Diana said without looking at her, her red eyes fixed on Alex. "Alex, what happened to her?"

Her girlfriend pressed her lips together, her eyes moist and her shoulders tense.

"Alex..." the Amazon sobbed, closing her eyes. "Please tell me what happened to my wife, please."

"Io." Alex began to tremble on the sand. _No no no babe, don't cry, don't cry._ Maggie knelt at her side, immediately embracing her hardened body. " Io t-traversed her chest- I couldn't do anything, I-I couldn't see if- I don't know if she- Menalippe..."

"Io?" Diana looked at her with the incredulity of a desperate convalescent on her wet face. "The same Io I used to play with me when I was little? The same Io who never knew how to lift a sword?"

 _It seems she had more dexterity with the bow._ Diana looked as if someone had just slapped her with a leather glove, her suffering and confusion so great that Maggie was surprised she had the strength to speak. She had never seen anyone look worse.

"And no one did anything?" she was not looking at Alex's red face, she was not looking at anything. "Didn't any of my two thousand nine hundred and fifty sisters do anything to help me, my wife, and my mother?"

Her gaze met Maggie's, and she did not need any answer.

Diana, one of the strongest people Maggie had ever known, trembled like a leaf. "You know?... Thirty-five years ago, when Artemis and I met in The Contest, the first thing she told me was _'Your stupidity is so great that it prevents your eyes from seeing the envy you awaken in people'_... I never thought she would be right."

And then she began to cry like a child.

Maggie pulled her into her arms, letting her and Alex moisten her white T-shirt even more.

* * *

 _Lena opened her eyes again, losing her balance momentarily and almost falling on the floor of dark slabs. Her hands clutched at the wall beside her, her eyes trying to see something in the darkness of that place similar to an aisle. "W-Where am I?" She gasped as Jess appeared suddenly at her side, looking at the floor and not at her. The dim light reflected shadows on her serious face. **We are in your mind again.**_

 _A small gleam caught her attention above her head. Lena narrowed her eyes, trying to make out what it was. It was a light, as small as a firefly, like a..._

 _"That's a security camera." murmured Lena. "We're in L-Corp's basements."_

 ** _No._** _Jess still did not look into her eyes, staring at the floor. **We are in your memory. You have unwittingly given it this familiar appearance.**_

 _Lena looked away from the Cosmic imitation of her secretary, watching the hallway in front of her. Like the place she knew, innumerable gray doors were on either side. The brunette was pretty sure there were no brooms behind them._

 _"Why are we here?"_

 ** _Sometimes you come on your own when you sleep._** _Jess looked at the ceiling. **But humans never remember for a long time what their consciences do while their brains rest. I brought you here to offer you the ability to change that.**_

 _Lena swallowed, her eyes fixed on the red color of Jess's irises. Vacillating, with an itch spreading down her throat, the brunette moved slowly down the hall. Her footsteps made no sound against the floor, as if the only noise in that strange world was her voice and the sound of her breathing. Trembling slightly, she reached the first door, unsteadily touching the doorknob. "What's behind here?"_

 ** _This is your first memory._** _Jess answered at her side. **A few minutes after your birth.**_

 _"I don't understand." she said, using all her courage to stare at the Entity. "Why are you showing me this?"_

 ** _I want to make an exchange._**

 _Her right hand shook. "What do you mean?"_

 ** _I will allow you to remember everything you do while you sleep, all the memories you witness. Instead I want you to let me use your body for a few minutes._**

 _She felt a stone in the middle of her stomach. "Why do you want to use my body?"_

 ** _Because I want to talk with your beloved._**

 _Her heart sank._

 ** _I know what you are thinking, but my intention is simply to talk to her._**

 _"Why are you asking me for permission if you can take my body by force?"_

 ** _You still think of me as if I were a god._** _Jess looked into her eyes for the first time. Lena looked away immediately. The infinite was in those red eyes, Lena was sure she would go crazy if she looked at them for a long time. **I am not a god, Gap. I do not want to hurt. That is not in my nature, as it is not in yours.**_

 _"And if I say no?"_

 ** _I will take it anyway, but it will be because I had no choice._**

 _Lena sighed deeply. "I won't even pretend that I understand what you want... Please, don't hurt Kara, she's what I love the most in the world. I need her."_

 ** _I know._**

 _Jess disappeared from her side, as if she had never even been there. Lena bit her lip with all her strength, her anger mixing with the impotence of knowing that someone was going to use her body and that she had no way of avoiding it. (Anyway I'm trapped). She took a deep breath, regaining her composure._

 _(If I can't get out of here, at least I'll find out what's behind this door)._

 _She opened the gray door, her eyes blinded for a few seconds by the brightness on the other side. Lena found herself in a room lit by morning light through a window. (Oh my Go-). Her eyes widened in disbelief. In front of her was a bed, where a sweaty Artemis was watching, with a loving expression, a baby in Diana's arms. (Oh my G-) Lena felt a bittersweet slap on her face as she watched the bright smile on the other brunette's face._

 _'She's perfect.' Diana bit her lip and pressed her nose against the baby's face. 'She's... perfect. I... I can't believe she's mine.'_

 _'Well, she just destroyed my uterus... Six hours with her head between my legs. I would say she's quite like you.'_

 _'Missy, not in front of the baby.' Diana kissed her chubby cheek. 'Excuse Mom, Athena. She's just a little tired, you took your time to come out.'_

 _'Stop there, Diana.' said Artemis. 'No daughter of mine will be called Athena. Do you want them to mock the poor girl for the rest of her life?'_

 _'But Missy...'_

 _'No.'_

 _'What about Hippolyta? We could call her Lyta.'_

 _'Give me the baby, I'll put her inside my belly again.'_

 _Diana sighed, touching the small hands of the black-haired baby. 'What about Lena?... To honor your father.'_

 _The redhead's eyes widened slightly. 'Lena... as in the history.'_

 _'It's a warrior's name.' Diana kissed her small head. 'Do you like it?'_

 _Artemis nodded, reaching out to touch the baby. 'I like it.'_

 _'Well, Lena it will be... Hello hello, Lena' Diana said playfully. 'I'm Mommy and she's Mom. We've been waiting so long to meet you, and you're much prettier than I imagined. We love you very very very very very very very much, My Sun and Stars.'_

 _Lena saw her newborn version twist a little. Wiping the tears on her cheeks, she smiled._

* * *

 _become an agent_

 _of chaos cut_

 _their heads devour_

 _their hearts tear out their_

 _eyes no one of them will remain_

 _alive let them_

 _die let them die until the_

 _last one who dares to keep_

 _men away from their passions let_

 _them die until the last one who condemns_

 _the undisclosed desires in our hearts_

* * *

 _Winn did not know where he was, or how much time had passed, barely remembering his own name. The only thing he knew for sure was that there were two or more people holding him with steel strength, making him advance through that comfusing place. Winn could see green spots in the distance, before one of the men sank his fingers into his arm to push him forward. He could barely feel the pain._

 _They were walking through a sort of corridor, a dark place where monsters stalked in every corner. Half-open doors softly lit the hallway with their dying white lights, lights that seemed to emit cold rather than heat._

 _Winn managed to peek inside one of the rooms. His throat contracted as if he had been hit in the stomach. "Ka-..." Kara was inside that room, lying on a stretcher, covered by a white sheet. Her hair was short and there were multiple wounds in her arms. "Kar-..."_

 _The men forced him to move on._

 _"Kaaara..."_

 _Winn almost lost his balance again._

 _"Kaara. Kara! KARA!"_

* * *

 **The man with the pretty face.**

 **Sometime before dark.**

Winn regained consciousness, his head feeling lighter than usual, as if his brain had been replaced with feathers. His throat ached terribly, as if he had been screaming for hours. Every little corner of his body ached as if he were back in high school and those bullies had hit him in the bathroom. _Where the hell-? M'gann._ Winn felt the air escape his lungs. _They have M'gann. These guys have M'gann, I have to..._

Winn managed to open his eyes, groaning in discomfort. His gaze met a wooden ceiling, lit by warm light from a gas lamp beside him. _I'm... in a bed?_ Winn pursed his lips and sat up, watching the room around him. The walls were made of wood, warm shadows dancing on its surface. A hermetically sealed window revealed that it was sundown outside, the violet sky lacked any stars. To the left was a white door, and to the right a bookcase full of old books. Winn noticed a pair of brown couches in front of the bed where he was.

Jason Teague was sitting on one of them, watching him with his legs crossed and a smile on his thin lips.

"Y-You." growled Winn with his throat aching.

The blond man leaned forward. "It's me." his smile spread even further down his face. "Have you slept well, pretty boy?"

"Where am I?"

"Wow, do you really think I'm going to tell you?" said the other man, leaning his face on his hand. "No, things don't work that way."

 _Oh damn damn damn damn damn damn I'm prisoner of a pervert with damn superpowers hell._

"Why am I here?" said the technician, trying to be brave. "What do you want from me?"

"Mhmm..." Teague pursed his mouth. "Well, that's a good question. I'd like to make it clear from the beginning." he turned to look at him, never stopping his smile. "I want everything from you, I want you to be mine."

His heart sank.

"Oh, don't worry. I'm a lot of bad things, but I'm not a rapist." he sighed. "That's not part of the game."

"I'm not interested in playing." murmured the brunet from a distant place. "I'm not interested, let us go back home. Where's M'gann? M'gann! M'GANN!"

"If you scream again, I'll use my powers to keep you quiet." The smile is gone. "And I don't want that to be part of our game. Nop, not at all."

"What have you done with M'gann?"

He shrugged. "You better forget about her, you won't see her again."

"What did you do to her?" his fear mingled with anger. "If you hurt her or her baby..."

"It's because of that baby that she's here." Teague sighed. "That little inopportune Gap that she has in her belly."

 _This man is crazy._ "Where is she?"

"Maybe she's behind that white door, pretty boy." he bit his lip. "The question is, are you willing to find out?"

Winn swallowed, feeling like a fly trapped in the nets of a giant spider. The blond man looked at him with a playful smile, playing with his fear and concern. _I have to be strong._ Winn knew he had no choice but to resist. _They must be looking for us out there. I have to be strong. This is just another bad guy to beat._

"Riddle: is she or is not she behind that door, Pretty Boy?"

Winn looked at him with a deep hatred coming from the dark part of his soul, that side of him that was similar to his father and he was always trying to suppress. He filled his lungs with oxygen, clenched his fists, and rose quickly from the bed to the only door of the room. _I have to be sure._ Winn opened the white door.

It was just an empty bathroom.

"You're sick." Winn turned to the couch, startled when he found it empty. He walked toward the center of the room, his eyes scanning every corner. "Where are you?" there was no one else. "WHERE ARE YOU!?"

Winn was alone, in a place with no entrances or exits.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **6:47 PM**

The light in Data's room was slightly brighter than the rest in the Fortress's rooms, highlighting the hundreds of shades of blue that Kara could see around her. The Kryptonian ran a hand through her messy blonde hair, staring at the image of L-Corp on the large-sized screen in front of her. It had not been very difficult for Kelex to access that terrestrial satellite. However advanced the technology of certain earthlings was, it was several centuries obsolete compared to the Kryptonian tech.

The video was from a week ago. Kara had no doubt that the government had reviewed it several times, but she was sure that her eyes would be much more efficient when it comes to looking at the details.

"Kelex."

 _'Kara Zor-El?'_

"Play the video again." said Kara, rubbing her neck. "A little slower this time."

Kara did not know when the bomb had been planted, so she had spent the whole day checking the last week of L-Corp minute by minute. It was by far the most boring job she had done in a long time, but she had to start looking somewhere. _C'mon, you have to be close._

Thousands of faces entered and left L-Corp from 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM on that fateful Friday. Kara sighed, trying to fix each face in her memory, each of the possible identities of the person who had ruined her life. _It could be any of them._

"Kelex."

 _'Kara Zor-El?'_

"Play the next hour."

The video went on quickly, Kara's alien eyes fixing on each person in detail. A scientist checking his cellphone. A secretary picking her nose. Andrea Sachs walking towards her car. A man and a woman in a wheelchair entering the building. The vice president coming out while using his cellphone, a...

 _Wait._

"Kelex."

 _'Kara Zor-El?'_

"Go back four and a half seconds and stop the video."

The robot obeyed and the screen returned to the moment when the man and the woman entered the building. Kara had never seen the blond guy, but the woman in the wheelchair was very familiar.

"Zoom in on the image, I want to see her face more closely."

Kelex obeyed and the image of the woman was enlarged. Kara rose from the chair to bring her face to the screen, feeling the need to not miss the smallest detail. The woman had soft brown hair, slightly wavy ( _her roots are blonde, her hair is dyed_ ), round jaw and full cheeks; her face had nothing special. Her antarctic blue gaze had dilated pupils, staring at a spot Kara could not see. _I know this face._

Her mind rewinded until the night Maggie and her were getting ready to travel to New York _. ('Hi everyone! I'm sorry for being late. I had to stop an armed robbery, save a dog from being run over, and help a woman in a wheelchair who had fallen across the street'.)_

 _It's the same woman, she was there when we went to New York. And now she's entering L-Corp an hour before its explosion._

 _Who is this woman?_

Kara could see the shiny edge of a necklace beneath the collar of her shirt. She narrowed her eyes, noticing the shape of a small circle on her chest, beneath the fabric of her clothing. _That almost looks like a..._

 _'Kara Zor-El, you have a new message from Kal-El.'_

Kara blinked a couple of times, turning her eyes away from the woman to see Kelex. "Put it on the screen."

The satellite's video disappeared and instead Kal's message appeared, short and written in Kryptonian. _'Go to the CatCo website'_ her cousin had written.

"Kelex, access CatCo Worldwide Media's website. Don't forget to make us undetectable."

On the screen, the soft pink and light yellow colors of the web page that Kara knew so well appeared. Instead of finding the usual fashion and celebrity articles, the first thing Kara saw was a headline in dark letters. **_'Maxwell Lord confirms transsexuality'._** _What?_ Kara blinked a couple of times. _What the fuck? Why does Kal want me to see this? This will only give bad visibility to- Oh, this news is from yesterday._

Kara ordered the robot to go to the recent news section, wondering what was so important that Kal wanted her to see. _Cat wouldn't let anyone attack me in CatCo Magazine. She knows what happened wasn't my fault, doesn't she? Cat has to know._ The recent news section finally appeared, the first headline highlighting with capital letters. Kara's eyes widened in disbelief. **_'SUPERWOMAN RISE'._**

 _It can't be..._

 ** _'October 19. 3:56 AM_**

 _Many things have happened since last October 11, a date that will be recorded with fire as the worst day this city has ever seen. The nightmare of thousands of people became reality and we were attacked by surprise, without any reason. We have all lost security and faith in the authorities, we have all lost friends and families. People I worked with every day are no longer here, children my son went to school with are no longer here. And even it seems that Supergirl is no longer here, after her secret identity was revealed to the world and the same world, in its pain, made the mistake of turning its back._

 _This week nobody has done more than talk about my former assistant, Kara Danvers, until recently a normal journalist with a seemingly boring life. It is hard enough for me to be strictly professional when it comes to Kara. That girl has saved me and my family countless times. And on the other hand is the heroine Supergirl, our guardian angel who always has risked her life for our safety with the obstinacy of a mule._

 _This morning I heard presidential candidate Ronald Dump speak out against Supergirl in his press interview. One of his arguments was that the world does not need Supergirl, having the government and Superman already. My sight was never perfect, but I am sure I did not see the Man of Steel come here to help his cousin, nor did the government arrive on time. As usual, they were late, only arriving when the alien had disappeared and our city was devastated. Another of Mr. Dump's arguments was against the fact that Kara kept her identity as a secret. His exact words were 'Why lie if she had nothing to hide?'. Let me make it clear: a Superhero does not lie to hide something. A Superhero lies to protect something, like her friends, disappeared and killed during the attack. Like her adoptive mother, disappeared the moment she knew she had become a target. Like her sister, disappeared a week ago in the Themiscyrian Revolution. Like her girlfriend, whom we all saw explode in the building._

 _Mr. Dump ended his tirade of hatred and ignorance saying that we will never have Supergirl again, because if her entire life was based on her two identities, now that the world has discovered her she will not show her face again. As a person who really knows Kara Danvers, let me say that is totally false. No, she is not here now; I don't know where she is either. But she will return, stronger, as we are stronger after the massacre we survived. We focus on the fact that Kara Danvers is an alien, forgetting that Supergirl is a wonderful human being who has been protecting us for almost three years. However, there is something in which I agree with Mr. Dump: Supergirl has already ceased to exist. Because after this test, Kara Danvers will come back older, stronger. And CatCo Magazine will refer to her as Superwoman from now on, to show our support for her and our opposition to the candidacy of Ronald Dump._

 _~Cat Grant._

Kara bit her smiling lip, bittersweet tears sliding down her cheeks and falling into her lap. _She still believes in me._ Her heart pumped a mixture of happiness and shame all over her body. _I've disappointed her again and she still believes in me. She has defended me publicly, she has taken a risk for me._ She sobbed and wiped her tears away. _I'm going to catch those guys, Cat. I'm going to catch them and then I'll be the Superwoman the city needs, I swear._ "If only I could send her a thank you message..."

 _'Kelex can use its technology to send her an untraceable message.'_

"Don't do it." Kara sighed. "She's already risked enough for me. I don't want to turn her into a target as well." _I'm sure those people are looking for me too._

An article title a little more to the left caught the blonde's attention: an image of the blue eye logo of the company EruditeCorp. **_'Robbery in the laboratories of EruditeCorp.'_**

"Kelex, open the news to the left."

It was not news, but rather a brief note that had Snapper's style. Kara pursed her lips and began to read. _'On Thursday, October 17, EruditeCorp CEO Beatrice Prior reported a robbery to Chicago authorities. The missing items would be three large boxes of their latest Simulation Serum version, the well-known substance used by several psychiatric hospitals to help their patients overcome various disorders. The authorities have questioned...'_

 ** _*Alert* *Alert* *Alert* *Alert*_**

Red letters appeared on the screen. Kara nearly fell off the chair.

 ** _*'Flying object approaching. Flying object approaching. Flying object-'*_**

"Darn." Kara stood up. "Kelex, activate the security system, especially in the infirmary. Activate the panoramic camera and look for nearby movement."

The white landscape of the desolate North Pole appeared on the screen. A small red circle marked the place where the Fortress of Solitude was located. A tiny yellow dot was slowly approaching their location. Kara narrowed her eyes, trying to capture every detail of the possible threat. _It's very small._ It looked like some kind of yellow bird. _No, it's even smaller. It seems like a..._

Kara gasped, rising from her chair so quickly that the furniture flew out and hit Kelex. The Kryptonian ran at full speed; through the door, along the hallway, passing the statues of her uncle and aunt and across the main hall past Kal-El's trophies. She reached the door, cursing Rao out loud when she could not open it. "Kelex, open the door!"

 _'Kara Zor-El has activated the security system.'_

"Turn it off! _Now!_ "

The door finally gave way, the snow from outside falling inside the entrance of the Fortress. Kara felt a slight pang of cold, like the tip of a small pin pressing against her skin. Her super vision met the tiny object immediately, confirming her hunch. It was a golden Snitch flying toward her.

"ALEX!"

Kara jumped into the air and propelled herself forward, flying the twenty yards that separated her from the little golden ball. The Kryptonian caught it in her right hand, stopping in the icy air to look at it, a painful hope running through her veins. The Snitch flapped in her hand.

"It's Alex's Snitch." _She must have sent it to let me know she's alive._ Kara drew the small ball to her chest. "Alex..." Kara bit her lip hard, feeling the moisture fill her eyes. "Alex, I'll find you."

 _I have to get Kelex to examine the Snitch. It might contain a clue as to where Alex is._

Kara Zor-El flew back to the Fortress of Solitude, her heart pounding as she landed in the entrance and closed the door behind her _. I'm going to find those guys._ Kara shook the snow off her clothes. _I'm going to find you. Alex, I'm on my way. Hold on. Hold on._

Kara saw a shadow move in her peripheral vision. The Kryptonian turned, beginning to open her mouth to order Kelex to analyze the Snitch. But instead of meeting the robot, Kara found Lena leaning gently against the glass wall, staring at the statue of Jor-El with her beautiful face completely blank.

She blinked a couple of times, her confusion mixing with her deep, violent, desperate relief. "Lena? Love?"

Lena staggered a little, losing her balance. Kara advanced to her immediately, taking her in her arms to keep her from falling. "Lena, honey, easy, you must still be a little weak. We're in the Fortress of Solitude, we're safe here." Kara rubbed her shoulders.

The brunette had her face bowed. "You are wrong." she murmured hoarsely.

Kara sighed. "This place is safe, I promise you. No one can hurt you here."

"You are mistaken, there is no place where the Truth has not spread their nets of destruction. No place is safe, lass."

Lena finally lifted her face a little, revealing two red eyes like pounding hearts, inhuman eyes on the beloved face she enjoyed looking at so much.

The blonde's hand shook. "L-Lena?"

The thing in front of her avoided looking into her eyes. "She is not here right now."


	33. House on Fire

**House on Fire (Things can't get any worse, can they?)**

… **..**

 **The Psychopath**

 **The Noble and Most Ancient Invisible Castle of Black**

 **8:50 PM Time in Scotland, UK**

Teague sighed with boredom, leaning against the wall of the corridor _. I don't understand why she calls me if she's going to keep me waiting. Lately Tess is getting carried away by her emotions too often._ Jason had been able to see the worry and the stress every time their eyes met throughout that week.

 _It's her fault for not having considered the possibility that Dax Novu had already established contact with the girl. Fuck, everything has gotten out of hand._ Jason gritted his teeth at the thought of Earth-15. He had never cared too much to save that universe, but he was no fool either. Their failure had put Veritas at risk. And even if she did not want to admit it, the matter of Kara Zor-El in love with the Gap had become a real pain in the ass for Tess. _Supergirl, Supergirl, our mistake was to prioritize being subtle. But you're forcing us to pursue you._

 _How the hell are we going to kill a Kryptonian without Kryptonite?_

Those thoughts made Jason feel slightly worried. And he hated to be worried. He was a member of The Truth; if there was something he should not feel, it was concern. _I'm frustrated._ Sighing, he took his cell phone to take a look at his favorite show, trying to relax.

Winslow Schott was the most appetizing man he had seen in a long time. Black hair and round buttocks, Jason's favorites. On the screen of his cellphone, the brunet was checking the walls of his room, probably looking for some secret door. He bent over and Teague had an exclusive view of the show that was his buttocks. _Mmmmmm._ He bit his lip, feeling his throat dry and a familiar tickle of excitement. _I think I'm falling in love._

The door to Tess's office opened at his side. The pleasant feeling of warmth died when he saw Granny Goodness's wrinkled face, smiling with that typical unpleasant grin similar to that of a piranha. The old woman wore a simple yellow dress that showed her wrinkled skin ( _she looks awful_ ), several gray files in her hands. _Surely her reports about our new guests. I wonder if she has already broken them._

"Oh, Jason, I hope you haven't waited too long out here." said the old woman with a slight smile.

Teague walked through the office door without bothering to look at her twice. "I don't have time now." The old woman shrugged and closed the door behind him.

Tess's office was darker than usual. He looked up at the ceiling, where her usual colored lamps were all turned off. Only the dim light from the yellow lamp on her desk allowed Jason to see around him. The woman was sitting by the window, a white blanket covering her useless legs, her gaze fixed on the sky, dark as if it had sucked all of Scotland's light. He could not see it, but he was sure that his boss's eyes were slightly red from recent crying. _Which must be the reason for the darkness._

"I'm already here." he said simply. "What do you want me to do?"

Tess did not look away from the window. "Where did you put Mr. Schott?" said the woman softly.

 _Why is she interested in my man?_ "In my favorite cage, the one with no doors."

"And where is Powergirl installed?"

"In the laboratory." he put his hands in his pockets. "It wasn't easy to pierce her skin without Kryptonite, we needed to use... alternative methods, but we've opened her up, even though we've run out of lead."

"Move her next to your man's cell. And get a hammer."

 _What?_ Jason frowned. _He's mine, what the hell does she want to do?_ "Is it absolutely necessary? Why do you want my man near that bitch?"

"For from now on it will be necessary to take drastic measures."

At last Lutessa looked away from the window, lifting the blanket on her legs and taking out from underneath it what looked like a piece of paper in the dark. _Is it a letter?_ Tess threw it on her dimly lit desk, next to a magazine with the headline _**'SUPERWOMAN RISE'**_. Jason frowned, taking the paper. "What is it?"

"A Wraith gave it to me an hour ago." Tess looked at her fingernails. "It's from Earth-1."

He moved nearer to the lamp. _Shit._ On the paper, in dark letters, were written these words: _**'To #38 from #1'**_. Jason opened his eyes as if what he had in his hands was a death sentence.

"I've also received messages from Earth-14, Earth-20, Earth-51..." she looked into his eyes, confirming that she had been crying. "Our priority has changed. We will have to deal with the consequences later, but now we have to kill the Gap."

"Powergirl?"

"Do what I tell you and move her. It's a security measure." she growled and advanced with her wheelchair. "And prepare thirty assault teams. We'll leave for the North Pole in twenty minutes."

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **7:36 PM**

"She is not here right now."

The Kryptonian's left hand moved as if it had a life of its own, tightening around the neck of the thing that was possessing her girlfriend. Kara's mental alarm was screaming for her to squeeze, but her protective instinct kept reminding her that it was Lena.

"Get out of my girlfriend."

The thing was looking at the ceiling. "I just want us to talk."

"I couldn't care less." _Lena is being possessed, heck, heck, heck._ "I'll kick your ass to the moon and back if you don't get out of my girlfriend _**now**_."

The thing still refused to look at her. "It was my voice that you heard in the explosion."

Her heart contracted. "I don't know what you mean."

"Have you convinced yourself that you did not hear anything?" she tentatively placed her hand over Kara's, trying to push it away. "I saved the Gap. I understand that you are afraid, but if you keep tightening, I will have to get you away. You are hurting her body."

Kara felt as if a dimensional portal had opened inside her stomach, sucking her guts. _This thing says it saved Lena from the explosion._

"Lass..." the thing finally looked into her eyes. Kara felt as if her legs had become wool, a mixture of terror and strange security clogging in her throat. "I am not your enemy. Release her neck."

Kara released her, almost without realizing it, without being able to take her eyes away from those red ones that seemed to turn off some part of her brain. As if she were willing to do anything that eyes ordered her to do.

The thing looked away. Kara gasped, staggering slightly.

"You do not have to protect her from me." said the thing looking at the ground. "My priority is also to protect her."

Kara bit her lip, clenching her fists with a feeling of murderous rage and alarming fear mingled with confusion. "Who are you? What are you?"

"The place I come from and my species have no name." said the thing in a gentle voice. "I understand the Amazons call me Lena. You can use the name of Dax Novu if you do not want to call me that."

"Alright, Dax Novu. Why the heck are you inside my girlfriend? What do you want?" _Heck, heck, HECK, things were already bad and now have gotten worse._

"I think you are making a mistake." the thing looked at the statue of Jor-El. "I am not your enemy, nor do I want to harm you or my Gap. I am completely dependent on you both now."

"Gap?"

"Your beloved." Kara could not be sure, but she thought she heard the thing sigh slightly. It was not very easy to be sure when Lena's face was as still as a statue. _It's not even blinking_. "Gaps are the name of the beings that I can unite with... As if I were behind a big wall, and the Gaps were small holes through which I can see what is on the other side."

"You're..."

"I'm not a god." she added, without losing the calm in her voice. "Please, do not make the mistake of comparing me with the despicable beings that my brother created. I am not a god, and the proof is that I am talking to you, instead of simply making you do what I want."

Kara pursed her lips, trying not to look frightened. However, her right hand shook slightly. "I hear you."

The creature slowly turned Lena's face, staring into Kara's chest. The Kryptonian realized she could not look into its eyes, and instead tried to concentrate on Lena's heart rate to make sure Dax Novu was telling the truth. But her heart was beating softly, as if she were sleeping carefree and not fighting an evil Entity.

Its face was solemn like an ancient statue. "Everything that exists around us is mine."

Kara gritted her teeth. "This place is the only thing that's left of my world."

"Your world was also mine." Its fingers moved a little. "I designed it all: the stars, the planets, the moons... the air you breathe, the light that nourishes you... the life that animates your body." she moved the fingers of Lena's other hand. "Everything that exists was created out of my dreams and my desires, and it's all beautiful, but terrible at the same time. My brother took my dreams and added something that I had not planned: greed, pain, hate, destruction..."

Kara nodded slowly, the rational part of her brain slightly aching. "You're telling me that you're... a being more powerful than a God, and that you created the Universe."

"No, Lass." Kara could have sworn the thing smiled slightly. "I created the Multiverse, and my brother took it from me."

The faces of Barry, Sarah and Oliver emerged in her mind, blurry like an old photograph. Cisco's scientific explanations about how interdimensional travel worked. Sarah's Time Travels. _But this is something on another level._

"Do you have... any way to prove that what you say is true?"

"Are you asking me for a demonstration of my power? I'm sorry I can not give you a very good one. The body of the Gap is as fragile as a drop of water in your hands. There are very few things I can do without hurting her."

 _This nightmare never ends._ "I meant that I have no way of knowing if you're telling the truth."

The thing nodded softly, extending Lena's hand forward. "Take my hand."

Kara tensed. "What are you going to do?"

"I will translate some of my memories so you can see them in your mind." she said softly. "Only the lighter ones, so your brain can handle them, although I warn you it will hurt a little."

Kara did not want to take that hand. Oh no, Kara would have preferred to wash her hair with Kryptonite. She just wanted to get Lena back and get rid of the thing that was using her as a phone, to protect Lena from everything that wanted to hurt her. _But this thing saved Lena._ Kara felt terrified, as if it were a nightmare and she could not wake up. _Nothing will improve with believing that everything will turn out well_. She sighed. _I don't have any other option. I'm all alone in the world and I have no choice._

Kara took its hand firmly.

* * *

 _nothing_

 _impossibly colored clouds floated around her but they were made of nothing and she was_

 _alone_

 _alone and at the same time accompanied by another being, a being that made her feel_

 _even more_

 _alone_

 _he was as far away as if he were but a dream and so_

 _close that he was certainly a nightmare_

* * *

 _she did not want to be_

 _alone_

 _anymore so why not take the nothing around her and do_

 _something pretty_

 _many pretty things_

 _pretty places which can_

 _simply_

 _be_

 _and why not go further and create_

 _create_

 _create_

 _others_

* * *

 _he approaches_

* * *

 _she has many ideas she will share them_

 _with him_

 _both can do many pretty things_

 _in those pretty_

 _places_

 _that she wants to create_

* * *

 _he likes the_

 _idea_

 _but_

 _does not like beauty_

 _he thinks it would be a better idea if_

 _they control everything_

 _but_

 _how can you enjoy_

 _something you control_

 _no she refuses_

* * *

 _he is angry_

* * *

 _he does not understand_

* * *

 _he does not want_

* * *

 _to understand_

* * *

 _help_

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **An eternity later**

Kara lost her balance and fell forward, banging her head hard against the hard Kryptonian crystal floor. Two rhythmic and frightening noises ripped through her ears. Her breathing, the beat of her heart. Kara opened her eyes and the blue glow, potent as the brightness of a star, forced her to close them again. The scent of Lena's body mixed with the stench of cold, a heavy essence as if it were ammonia. _My senses_. Her fingernails dug into the floor, sounds, smells, and lights piercing her brain like blows of a Kryptonite hammer. _My senses got out of control._

"I warned you it might hurt." Kara heard the noise of steps advancing toward her. The thing ( _no, it's not a thing, she's not a thing_ ) knelt at her side, gently laying Lena's hand on her forehead. "Your mind is too small."

"I just need... a moment." Kara tried to remember Jeremiah's soft voice. ( _'Concentrate on one thing, just one thing at a time.'_ ) Lena's quiet heart was nearby, her favorite song all over the world. Kara focused only on that sound, the strong muscle pumping blood through every inch of her body, how the thick liquid was slipping through her large and small veins, reaching her lungs, receiving oxygen, transporting it throughout her insides, and then returning to her heart. Kara kept her eyes closed, listening to the orchestra of her blood. "What was that I saw?"

"What happened before the war began." Lena's hand stroked her hair. "The simple memories, before my brother and the gods locked me away forever."

 _Those were the simple memories?_ Kara bit her lip, the feeling of despair growing in her chest. She tried to open her eyes tentatively, the blinding glow of light slowly decreasing.

The creature's face was very close to hers, staring at her with those infinite red eyes.

Kara sobbed, making futile attempts to control the moisture that escaped her eyes.

"Why are you crying?" she asked, barely moving her lips.

"Because I can't win." Kara wanted to look away, an action as impossible as waking up from a deep sleep. "My friends are prisoners of something that no one can beat." she sobbed. "My sister... Lena's mothers... I can't save them."

"No."

Kara raised her trembling hand to wipe away her tears. "I can't defeat the God of the Gods."

"There is a way." she pressed Lena's lips. "There is only one way to recover your friends and stop The Truth forever." Lena's hand moved from her forehead to her cheek. "You have to set me free, Kara Zor-El."

* * *

 **Alexandra Danvers**

 **?:?**

The figure began to advance along the river, a dark blur in the distance, completely mesmerizing for Alex. She still could not see it clearly, but she could distinguish a humanoid form in that black, ghostly smear. _The ghost of all childhood nightmares_. Alex looked sideways at Maggie standing at her side, with dark circles that screamed her fatigue. Diana was on the other side, her lips tight, her eyes empty since she had cut her thick black hair with Artemis's sword. She looked very different with her hair so short. ( _'Cut your hair, tear your garments, your whole nation has died'_ ) _Well, in this case the nation turned out to be full of treacherous whores, but I suppose there's no difference._ Alex sighed, remembering Kara's nightmares during her first year on the Earth. _Mourning is a great shit_. She squeezed Diana's hand gently. Wonder Woman did not return the gesture, but neither did she pull away.

Maggie looked at them. "We don't have coins."

"The coin thing is just a myth." whispered Diana. "He accepts any metal, it's his food. We'll give him your armor."

The figure began to grow larger, advancing through the fog like a stalking monster. _Diana knows what she's doinh._ The ghostly form of the boat lifted his face, looking out over the shore where they were. The fog prevented Alex Danvers from seeing the thing clearly, but she could feel the weight of his gaze, analyzing her, noticing the life running through her veins. _Diana knows what she's doing, she's been here four times. For her this is like a trip to Grandma's house._

Charon went out of the fog and Alex could not help but grit her teeth.

He was just as she had imagined ghosts as a child. A large black robe, his face covered by a hood. He was advancing through the water using a big oar, holding it with dark fingers, sharp as claws. A dim lamp hung from the edge of the mast, swinging slowly with the movement of the boat. _There's something white tied to the edges._ They looked like a kind of ornament. Alex narrowed her eyes, trying to make out what they were. _Skulls. Holy Fucking Shit skulls._

Alex turned to look at Maggie, her hardened face suddenly paler. _I have to be braver for her._ Her gaze fell on her arm, where the wound made with the Dagger was beginning to heal. _I have to get out of here to help her, to help Kara._ Alex sighed deeply, joining her hand with Maggie's, caressing her thumb. _I'll face what I have to face._

Charon finally reached the shore, a huge dark spot in the midst of all that clarity. His hooded face studied them intently. Alex could have sworn his eyes were golden, like two new coins. Her vision returned to his hands, those long fingers that held the oar.

Diana bent to pick up Maggie's helmet and armor, then walked to the dark figure in the boat. "We have metal to pay you, Boatman."

Charon looked at the armor, holding out his black hand to touch it. _His hand is horrible, his boat is horrible, he's horrible, I want to get out of here._ Alex bit her lip hard, fixing her gaze on the skulls of the boat. _I wonder what they did._ Maggie wrapped her hand gently around her waist, drawing circles on her hip. That familiar gesture helped her to regain her composure.

Charon nodded in silence.

Diana turned to the Agent and the detective. "We can go up now."

Alex took Maggie's hand, both of them tightening their fingers. Diana climbed into the boat first, sitting down in the middle, near Charon _. Hold on a little longer, Kara. I'm on my way._ Alex jumped into the boat, feigning more security than she really had, trying not to look at the skulls. She held out her hand to help her girlfriend up. Her eyes met Alex's briefly, deep dark circles on Maggie's pretty face _. I must look worse_. Maggie tugged her hand and climbed into the boat, both of them sitting down at the other end, as far from Charon as possible.

The boatman used his oar to get away from the shore and to enter the Cocytus again, the boat swaying to the movement of the river. Alex's mind flashed to a quick memory of the time her father had brought her and Kara to fish. ( _'Don't forget that if you get on a boat, balance is the most important thing.'_ ) Alex held her other hand on the edge of the boat, exchanging a glance with Maggie, so she would do the same.

Diana struggled to smile a little. "Calm down, this boat is safe."

"Have you been on this thing before?" asked Alex, watching the water. Strange shapes moved there.

"Not really, I've always entered the Underworld through the door."

Maggie chuckled hysterically, startling Alex. "Wow, that's very reassuring." she shook her head sarcastically. "It's still better than a bullet."

"...Definitely better than an arrow." murmured Diana, squeezing her own knees gently, her gaze lost on the increasingly distant sand.

Alex felt the weight of the sword on her belt as if it were made of stone.

The boat began to move slowly toward the distance, where the clarity began to fade and was replaced by a deep darkness.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **8:19 PM**

They had both ended up sitting on the glass floor, with their legs crossed. The thing ( _no, Kara, she's not a thing, apparently the thing is the other one_ ) had her gaze fixed on Kara's feet, her face frozen, barely moving Lena's fingers from time to time.

"Why don't you look me in the eye?"

"Because I can influence you, and I do not want that." she moved Lena's thumb. "I never wanted to force the beings to obey me."

"It's exactly what you've been doing these months."

"No, not really. I only intervened when you were close to discovering me."

"It was you who made Lena behave that way? Who made her stronger?"

"She wanted to make her family proud." said 'Dax Novu', moving Lena's index finger. "And I wanted her to be happy."

 _This being is so strange_. "However, at that time you also influenced me."

"So you could stop worrying." she stopped wiggling Lena's fingers. "At no point did I want to hurt you, you are too important."

"Important?" Kara frowned. "What do you mean?"

"You are important to the Gap because you make her happy, you make her feel love." she looked at Kara's cheek. "And for me you are important because you keep her safe. Not only are you willing to die for her, but also to kill, and that is much more difficult."

Kara clenched her fists, slightly annoyed to hear that truth. _Am I a hero if I have a preference for the lives I save?_ "How did you end up at Lillian's well?"

Her shoulders tensed slightly, her gaze locked on Kara's cheek. "I do not know how the previous owner of the medallion managed to unite it to my conscience."

"You don't know?"

"I am not omniscient in the state in which I am." her eyes moved slowly to Kara's other cheek. "I can only see the things my Gaps see, I know what my Gaps know. If there is something Lena does not know, then I do not know it either."

 _Great._ "We'll have to figure that out."

"Do as you wish." her eyes fixed on Kara's hands. "The medallion I use to protect and talk to Lena is originally a tool used by The Truth, my brother's worshipers. They did not know I was in the medallion... until now." she sighed, or at least tried. Kara thought it was a kind of groan. "Our only advantage is gone."

"The Truth..." Kara whispered, her fists clenched. "Tell me about them. Tell me everything you know... They have my sister and my friends."

"The Truth are the beings conscious of everything: the origin of the Multiverse, the Gaps, my brother and I. They exist from the very moment in which life exists, changing in every millennium, every planet, every Universe, but always doing the same: killing my Gaps."

"Is there one in every universe?"

"There is one in every world of every Universe."

Kara swallowed. "Was there... was there one on Krypton?"

Dax Novu nodded slowly. "They did not call themselves The Truth nor did they live in hiding. They called themselves Codex and they controlled the planet. They decided who was born and who was not."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"... No... My planet wasn't ruled by the same kind of madmen who want to kill us now. It's impossible." she laughed nervously. "The Codex controlled everything because they wanted to improve our race to the end, and if they controlled how many children were born in each family, it was because we were overpopulated, not to avoid the birth of... 'gaps'."

Kara was surprised to feel Dax Novu squeeze Lena's hand against hers. "Do not suffer, Lass. They were not evil, they were not murderers either, it is not the same to kill someone as to prevent them from being born."

Kara jerked that hand away, almost stumbling in her haste to get up _. Heck._ Her eyes clouded with anger, her throat contracting as if she were about to vomit her heart. _Heck Heck Heck Heck HELL. They-Oh Damn it I can't even think straight._

"I don't want to talk anymore." gasped Kara, making a superhuman effort not to explode. "I need a moment to think."

Dax Novu lifted Lena's body with effort. "I understand... I will return the Gap her body. She is currently sleeping, she will wake up in a few hours."

The Entity leaned back against the cold wall of the Fortress, moving slowly toward the hallway, like a baby taking its first steps. Kara watched her with a morbid fascination. _She's not accustomed to walking._

"...Dax Novu."

She stopped in the middle of the hallway.

"What will happen if we don't stop those guys?"

"... I do not know what they do with beings that are not Gaps." she answered softly. "But sooner or later Lena would be killed. No one can protect her forever when the enemy who wants to destroy her is everywhere." her hand slid down the glass. "Everywhere."

She entered the hallway, leaving the Kryptonian's sight. Kara ignored her headache as best as she could and used her x-ray vision to see Dax advance slowly to the infirmary... entering it... getting on the first stretcher, and closing her eyes. Kara waited until Lena's ( _it's Lena again?_ ) breathing became rhythmic like a lullaby, evidence that she had gone back to sleep.

Only then did she let the force leave her body, letting herself fall to the ground like an abandoned doll _. Codex... what a trash_. Her trapped sobs found their way out of her throat, escaping with such a violence that made her esophagus feel enflamed, her eyes burning with hot tears. _I can't lose my world again._

 _I can't lose Alex._

 _I can't lose Lena._

Her sobbing ceased as suddenly as it began.

 _I don't even have to think twice._

Maybe Mon-El had been right and she was not selfless.

* * *

 **Just a Detective**

 **?:?**

Maggie saw the light begin to diminish slowly as they advanced through the Cocytus, from almost total brightness to a dim light, like the orange lights of a sunset. The four of them were in heavy silence, each one looking at different points. Alex watched the figures in the water and Maggie watched Alex. Nothing could go wrong if she kept her eyes on Alex until the trip was over. Alex, whose chest rose and fell slowly, whose lips were tight in a thin line, whose right hand held Artemis's sword as if it were all that was left of her friend.

"Maggie."

"Mmm?" said the detective, watching the movement of Alex's hair.

Her girlfriend turned to her. "Have you... seen James again?"

The detective sighed deeply, shaking her head. "He wasn't there when I came back for him."

Alex rested her chin on her hands, her eyes thousands of miles away. "We could have taken him with us."

"No." whispered Diana softly. "Nothing can bring the dead out of Tartarus. When your friends are gone, they are gone forever." she rubbed her haggard face. "Nothing can bring them back."

Maggie swallowed, the wound on her arm burning as if it had been sprinkled with vinegar.

"I can't believe James is gone." Alex rubbed the hilt of her sword. "He probably died trying to be Guardian... That dumbass."

Maggie found no words that could comfort her, so she decided to take her hand instead, rubbing her thumb. _It wasn't your fault_. The detective kissed her hand _. Everyone warned him, it wasn't your fault._

The light of that mystic sunset illuminated the horizon, where the river Cocytus flowed into another one, a little bigger. Its waters were soft lilac, like lavender. Maggie smelled a sweet scent in that new air, a delicious perfume impregnating their clothes, their skin, their hair. The boat advanced in silence until they entered the new river, the sunset reflecting orange shadows in Alex's hair.

Maggie stared at the water beneath them. Colorful shapes swam close to the surface, small fishes of a gaudy pink. _They are beautiful._

"Maggie, don't get so close to edge." said Diana softly. "You won't want to be splashed by the water of this river. It's the Lethe."

Maggie pulled away as if the fishes had become crocodiles. "The River of Oblivion?"

"Just below Themiscyra." said Diana trying to fake indifference. _I don't know how much longer she can take it, we have to take her to Lena and find out what happened to Artemis._

Alex looked curiously at the fishes. "What are these fishes?"

"They are memories." said the dark-haired woman, her eyes fixed on Charon. "The memories of the souls that have fallen in the river... Don't be surprised, Alex. We still have three rivers left. The next one is The Phlegethon, the river of fire."

* * *

 **Lena**

 **10:25 PM**

Lena was dreaming that she was in Diana's arms, being rocked gently before bed. It was a very real dream, she could feel love and protection floating in the atmosphere, ridiculously natural. Diana was kissing her cheek when she woke up.

 _What...?_ She opened her eyes, suddenly registering a soft light that came from some mysterious place outside her vision _. Where am I?_ For a moment, panic gripped her. The place where she was looked like a set from a science fiction movie. The light came from the walls, blue and bright as if they were huge night lamps _. Where am I?_ Lena felt her throat dry, her hands shaking like those of a person with Parkinson's disease. _Do they have me prisoner?_ She tried to ignore her headache to get out of the bed _. Lutessa kidnapped me? Kara. What happened to Kara?_

Lena managed to raise herself up on her bed, sliding her legs to the floor with effort _. I need to get out of here._ There were innumerable stretchers beside her, all empty. _I have to find Kara._

"Aaahh!"

Lena lost her balance and fell to the ground with a _**Blash!**_ The sound echoed on the luminous walls, rumbling in her brain. Her legs and abdomen ached as if she had been running for hours. _The city_. Lena crawled to the next bed, using it to get up with effort. _What happened to the city? Where's Kara? She has to be well, she has to; the bomb..._

Lena saw an open door in the entrance of the room, frowning at such a strange sight. _The door is open?_ Then she was not a prisoner. _Where the hell am I?_ The brunette advanced leaning against the wall, looking with suspicion at all the strange technology around her. The door led to a long corridor of blue crystal walls, radiating cold as if it were at the very North Pole.

"Kara?" the brunette tried to say, her voice hoarse like a smoker's. "K-Kara?"

Kara appeared at the other end of the hallway, right in front of her. Her hair was messy as if she had not combed it in days, her eyes were slightly swollen, her fists ( _her hands are injured what happened?_ ) painfully tight.

"L-Lena?" asked her girlfriend with incredulous eyes.

Relief ran through her veins, thicker than blood. "You're okay."

"Lena!" Kara ran to hug her, with perhaps a little too much force. No pain had ever felt so beautiful. "Lena..." Kara put her hands on her face, caressing her cheeks, their looks together as if they both wanted to slip under the skin of the other with desperate fury. "My Lena." Kara finally kissed her, bristling every hair on the brunette's skin, extinguishing every pain as if it were no more than mild discomfort. Kara caressed her lips after kissing them. "You're finally awake."

Lena circled her waist, so as not to lose her balance and to somehow satisfy her violent need to touch her. "Where are we?"

"We are in the Fortress, we're safe here." Kara did not remove her hands from her face, staining it lightly with blood. "O-Oh, Lena, I'm sorry, I..."

"What happened to your hands?"

Kara swallowed, avoiding her gaze. "I just destroyed a couple of walls. Kryptonian crystal is harder than concrete."

"Kara..." Lena felt a slight dizziness. "What happened?"

The blonde used the sleeve of her shirt to wipe her spotted cheek. "What's the last thing you remember?"

Lena bit her lip. "I... the bomb, the Scots..." her eyes widened painfully. "Lutessa."

"What?" Kara squeezed her shoulder with super strong lightness. Lena was sure that would leave a bruise. "What? Lena, what?"

"Lutessa, it was Lutessa all the time." her eyes filled with moisture. "That's the reason the photos disappeared. She tied me to the bomb, she's been spying on us for months, she and Veritas."

"Veritas..." Kara murmured. "Aletheia... The Truth." she lowered her gaze and gritted her teeth. "Are you sure it's Lutessa? How did she survive her illness?"

"She mentioned something about a Veritas cure." murmured the brunette. "It's Lutessa... She looks like Lillian." _And she's tried to kill me, like every decent Luthor_. "She's the cause of everything."

Kara released her, closing her eyes tiredly, sighing as if she had the weight of the world on her shoulders. The Kryptonian leaned her back against the blue wall. "The answer was in front of us from the beginning." she murmured. "From the moment Diana said 'Lutessa' for the first time." she shook her head, staring at the ceiling. "I can't believe we've been so blind."

Lena walked over to the wall, rubbing her girlfriend's arm. "I was the target all this time." _Again, this time for better reasons_. "...L-Corp exploded, right?"

Kara remained silent for eternal seconds, before nodding imperceptibly.

Lena felt a punch in her stomach. "No..."

"Honey..." Kara tried to hug her. "It wasn't your fault."

"How many dead?"

Kara looked at her in silence.

"I have to know, Kara. How many dead?"

The Kryptonian sighed. "One thousand five hundred."

Lena could have sworn with total conviction that she had heard the sound of her heart breaking apart. "One thousand five hundred people, to kill me." her hand pulled at her hair. "And I'm still here."

"...There's something else."

Lena laughed sarcastically. "Something else? What could be worse?"

"I think you should sit-..."

"What happened?"

"Lena, first-..."

"What happened!? Tell me! Tell me now!"

"They have them."

Kara had to hold her when she lost her balance. "How do they have them!?" the words blurred in her mind. "How do they have them!? That's impossible!"

"I'm sorry, Love."

"Kara, we're talking about two Amazons with their whole life of combat experience! We're talking about your sister Alex, who knows five methods of torture with only her little finger! We're talking about a city full of warriors in 300-Style! How is it possible!? How is it possible that the universe hates me so much!?"

"They were... betrayed." Kara bit her lip.

"The traitor?"

"There's not one traitor, Lena. There are almost four thousand." Kara looked at her with tears in her eyes. "There was a... revolution in Themyscira almost a week ago."

Lena stared at her in disbelief, bile rising in her throat with the irrepressible desire to throw up. "A revolution..."

"A treason." Kara rubbed her arms. "They betrayed us... They deceived us ... And now it's up to us, do you understand?" she rubbed her shoulders again. "Love, I doubt that things can get worse. But you and I are still here, resisting. We have to find our family... And I have realized that... to achieve this, the rules have to change."

Lena looked at her blankly.

Kara touched the medallion on her neck. "We have to do whatever it takes to beat Veritas." their eyes met again. "I don't care what their motives are. They have been murdering people for centuries, they have taken our friends, they have destroyed our lives... They tried to kill you." her girlfriend growled angrily, encircling her in her arms as if to hide her under her skin. "They have declared war on us."

Lena knew she was right. _And war never leaves winners, only wounded._

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **?:?**

When they reached the river Phlegethon, the sky had disappeared to be replaced by a distant dark roof.

Maggie had not stopped looking at the shores at any moment, hoping to see some human figure even if only fleetingly. Diana had said most of them hovered over the river Acheron. She had already made it clear that Alex could not see the ghosts because she was mortal, reason for which her girlfriend had drawn her sword, holding it firmly on her knees.

"Are you seeing the same thing I am?" asked Alex as the boat entered the river of fire.

Maggie turned to look at her. "What are you seeing?"

"A river made of fire beneath us, very Dante style." Alex frowned. "It's not hotter... nor do I see the damned ones burning alive for the rest of eternity."

Diana slipped away from Charon, approaching them. "Signor Aleghieri always tended to exaggerate after a few glasses of wine... However, we may have to be careful with the Shinigamis."

"Shinigamis?" asked Alex, her face gleaming in the light of the flames.

"A very special kind of monster." sighed Diana. "I've never heard of one approaching the boat, but they can be a nuisance if they feel curious enough."

"What is a Shinigami?"

"They are like the sirens of the river Phlegethon, but without beauty."

 _I bet they're not friendly like Ariel. Damn it._

Alex tightened her grip on the hilt of the sword. "Just what was missing: monsters I can't see."

Maggie sighed deeply, remembering when she was a child and Killer Croc terrified Gotham. _I doubt that Batman can get here._

Charon continued steadily down the river of fire. Maggie could not help but look at him and wonder what he looked like under the hood. _I think it's better not to know_. Sighing, the detective looked up at the distant ceiling, completely dark as an ink smear. _It must be made of stone._ Despite the fire, Maggie was cold, as if the river sucked the heat instead of emitting it.

A shadow moved in the distance, on the bank of the river.

Diana pursed her lips. "They are there."

Maggie stared at the Shinigamis, beings who looked totally born out of nightmares. There were two, one black male and one white female. The black one was skeletal, his face pale as a worm, his black hair pointy and his eyes yellow without pupils. He looked like a decaying corpse. The other Shinigami had purple hair, one snake-like eye and the other covered by a bandage. Her deformed body was covered with innumerable bones. They were the most frightening thing the detective had ever seen, and in her line of work she saw horrible things every day.

Alex neared to the edge, her sword in her hand. "What a surprise, I can't see them either."

Charon spoke for the first time, his voice similar to a growl from an old pipeline. Maggie shivered at that voice. "What did he say?"

"He said that she has to be touched by a Shinigami to be able to see them." answered Diana.

Alex frowned. "No thanks."

Maggie noticed the black Shinigami's gaze on the boat, smiling in a frightening way. _He looks like a monster out of a Stephen King novel._ The creature looked at them with mockery, aware of his terrifying appearance. _What is he doing?_ The Shinigami approached the river of fire and dived inside, as if it were a pool. _Oh shit._

"He's coming here."

"Keep calm." said Diana, taking out the Dagger of Hera. "Maggie, get to Alex's left and I'll be to her right. Only you and I can see him so we'll have to cover her."

"I can see the movement of the fire." replied Alex with her eyes on the Phlegethon.

The Shinigami advanced towards them like a shark in the water, pulling his horrible head out on the right side of the boat. He was even more horrible up close. Maggie noticed that his lips were red, his teeth sharp. The creature smiled horribly.

 _'Well, hello!'_ said the Shinigami in a shrill voice. _'Not every day the living come down here. My name is Ryuk, welcome to my humble abode.'_

"Go back where you came from and we won't hurt you." growled Diana.

The Shinigami looked at her briefly. _'No offense, Princess, but I'm not talking to you, but to the mortal.'_

Alex looked at Maggie sideways. "What's going on?" she whispered.

"The Shinigami is talking." said Maggie without looking at her.

The creature stared at Alex. _'I waited a long time for a mortal to appear here. Is there any chance I can touch her, to talk to her?'_

Diana growled angrily. "If you get close I'll cut your claws."

 _'Whatever. You, the little one, ask your friend if she wants to make a deal.'_

"Whatever it is, we're not interested." answered Maggie, unconsciously moving on Alex to put distance between her and the Shinigami.

 _'Mmm? You sure? Maybe she'll be interested in what I can offer her.'_

 _Maybe he'll leave._ "He says he wants to make a deal with you, Alex."

The Agent looked at the fire suspiciously.

 _'Tell her I want to exchange my eyes for some of her blood.'_ said the Shinigami. _'My eyes have the ability to see how much lifespan the humans have. With my eyes, she could know the exact moment everyone around her would die.'_

Maggie felt a shiver. "He says he offers you his eyes... With them you could know the exact moment people would die. In return he wants some of your blood."

Alex opened her mouth in astonishment.

"Don't accept it, Alex." growled Diana. "The Shinigamis are trapped in Tartarus by blood magic. If they drink blood of a mortal, their bond would break and there would be nothing to hold them back." Diana pressed the Dagger. "They would be able to go out into the outside world."

Alex frowned. "The answer is no, now go." she said looking a little further to the left of where the monster was.

 _'Are you sure? You couldn't avoid their natural deaths, but you could know how much time you have left with them.'_

"She said no." Maggie managed not to look away from the abomination. "Go away at once."

The Shinigami sighed and submerged himself in the fire, disappearing from their sight. Maggie and Diana exchanged a look of mistrust, approaching Alex, who looked everywhere, searching for something she could not see.

"I dont trust him." whispered Diana. "Let's keep our eyes op-"

 _ ***BLASH!***_

The Shinigami jumped over the fire, unfolding his dark wings and rising into the air. In less than a second the monster took Alex ( _ **NO!**_ ) in his arms and flew away.

 _"ALEX!"_

 _"SHIIIIIIIIT!"_

Her girlfriend floated in the air, trapped in the monster's arms. The Shinigami fluttered furiously, flying away from the boat. Alex's face was a photograph of surprise and anger, mixed with fright. She struggled in his claws, trying to lift her sword to wound her captor, but failing at every stroke because of her inability to see him.

"LET ME GO, PIECE OF SHIT!"

 _'Just a bite!'_

"Charon, stop!" shouted Diana. The boatman ignored her. "CHARON!"

Alex fought furiously with the enemy she could not see, while the river of fire reflected their shadows. She managed to hurt one of the claws of the Shinigami, getting him to release her arms so that the Agent hung upside down like a rag doll. "RELEASE ME NOW!"

"I told you to GO BACK!" Diana lunged at the mythological boatman, trying to take his huge oar away. Charon growled and used the claws of his hands to try to attack her. The boat began to wobble in the river of fire, splashing flaming drops everywhere. Diana managed to catch the creature's claws, but Charon used his weight and her weakness against her and pushed the Amazon against the edge of the boat, her head a few inches from the fire.

Maggie did not think for a second before finding herself sinking her sword into the creature's chest ( _ **'GRAAAAAARG!'**_ ). Diana pushed the boatman away with all her might. Charon stumbled over the edge and fell into the river of fire.

"Take the oar!"

They combined their strength to lift the huge oar and advance to where the Shinigami and Alex were fighting in the air. But the monster kept spinning, trying to bring his mouth close to Alex's slippery body. "Hold on!" a black liquid escaped from the wound of the Shinigami. "Hold on, Alex!"

"ITOLDYOUTOLETMEGOOOOO!"

Alex managed to sink her sword into the leg of the Shinigami. The monster howled in pain and let go of her foot. "ALEX!" Maggie's heart stopped until she saw the monster flapping his wings to descend and catch her again, inches from the fire. The horrible creature had his face inches from hers, opening his mouth as big as if he wanted to tear out her head. Alex raised her sword in time, using it to block the Shinigami's teeth, staining them both with the black liquid. The struggle made him finally stop moving.

"Maggie, keep paddling!"

"Diana, what-WATCH OUT!"

Wonder Woman grunted and jumped over the edge, out of the boat, holding onto the monster that kept Alex trapped in his claws. The Amazon managed to push herself toward the creature's back, her hand clutching his pointy black hair. The Shinigami took a violent turn, stretching his claws to try to hurt either of the two women. _They're going to fall._ Maggie felt the sound of her heart deafening her ears. _I have to row I have to row they're going to fall._

"Let her go!" screamed Diana, circling the monster's neck from behind. "LET HER GO, DAMN IT!" a blow from his wing almost made her fall. "ALEX!"

"I'M BUSY!" the sword was the only thing that separated her from those sharp teeth. The Shinigami began to spin violently around the boat, trying to make the humans dizzy.

"You have to let go of the sword!"

"NO!"

"Trust...!" the black liquid stained her face. "...Me!"

Alex grunted furiously at the monster. "FUCK YOU!"

Alex released her sword, letting it fall to the river Phlegethon. Maggie watched it fall in slow motion in front of her ( _we need it_ ). She pounced on the edge and caught it in time, almost falling over into the flames. Diana had only a thousandth of a second to lift her right hand and cut the monster's neck with the Dagger, his sharp teeth only one centimeter from Alex's nose. The Shinigami uttered a horrible scream ( _'RAAAAAARGSH!'_ ) before he began to bleed out, his claws caught in Alex's clothing. He stopped flapping and began to fall. Alex freed herself of his left claw, and Diana sliced his right claw. The fire was fast approaching. Maggie wanted to scream something, but her throat was completely blocked. When her heart stopped, sure that they would not make it, Alex and Diana freed themselves and jumped away from the Shinigami.

 _ ***BLAASH* *SMACK***_

The first sound was the violent _**splash**_ of the Shinigami falling into the Phlegethon, splashing fire drops in thousands of directions. The second sound was the dry noise of Alex and Diana falling into the boat, the Amazon near the edge and the Agent on top of her girlfriend, causing them both to hit themselves on the wooden deck.

"ALEX!" said Maggie trying to take Alex's elbow off her ribs. "Alex, are you okay?! Are you hurt!?"

"Fucking hell." her girlfriend growled, shivering slightly beneath the Shinigami's blood. "Damn... Fucking... Hell."

"Tartarus." Diana spat some of the black liquid. "Damn fucking Tartarus."

Alex gasped and got off Maggie, totally disgusted with her state. The pestilence of the blood made the detective's stomach contract, as if she were about to throw up. "Are you hurt?"

"I'm okay, he hasn't hurt me." Alex tried uselessly cleaning herself up a bit. "Where's Charon?"

Maggie and Diana looked at each other in silence.

"This has to be a fucking joke!" shouted the Agent. "Did you just kill Charon!?"

"He didn't want to go back." Diana put the Dagger in her belt.

"Great." Alex sighed. "And now what do we do?"

"We'll have to row on our own." said Diana. "Not far left before we get out of this river."

Maggie stood up, wrinkling her nose before the smell of blood _. I smell like wet garbage_. She seriously considered the idea of throwing all her clothes into the fire. _At least no one got injur-._

 _Wait_

Maggie looked frantically at the shore. The white Shinigami had disappeared.

"Diana, Al-"

 _ ***BLAASH***_

The Shinigami abruptly materialized out of the water. Maggie could only see a purple and white blur before her teeth sank into Alex's arm.

"ALEX!"

"GAAAAHH!"

The Shinigami released her as quickly as she bit her, rising into the air in front of them before Diana could pounce on her. Maggie threw herself on Alex, who stared frozen at the deep wound on her arm. "The jacket! The jacket!" Maggie took the black jacket off her girlfriend, both pressing on the wound to stop the bleeding.

"Come here!" shouted the Agent to the Shinigami. "COME HERE! I'LL KILL YOU FOR WHAT YOU DID!"

The white Shinigami simply shook her head.

 _'No, you will not. I'm already free.'_

The Shinigami turned, flying away from the boat, away from the Phlegethon, heading for the outside world.

Maggie and Diana exchanged a look of helplessness.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **10:55 PM**

The brightness of the screen reflected light in Lena's hair, reflections that bounced on the crystal walls of the Data room numerous times. Her girlfriend had her gaze fixed on the screen, her lips pressed into that characteristic grimace that Kara knew meant anger. In this case, anger towards the image of the woman on the screen. "She's Lutessa."

Kara rested her face on her hand, looking back at the screen. "Tess Mercer... at least we have something to start looking for." she took a deep breath. "What about the man?"

Lena wrinkled her nose. "Jason Teague, although it may not be his real name. He has some kind of... powers. Telekinesis."

"I don't know what that is."

"Have you seen the movie Matilda?"

"That little girl who has worse parents than you and I together and the crazy director? The one who can move things with her eyes?"

"With her mind. That's telekinesis, but I don't think Teague uses it to eat cereal." Lena tightened her lips, her hands clutching the edge of the table. "Anyone we talked to last month could be a member of Veritas."

"We'll find them", said Kara, drawing her girlfriend into her arms, inhaling the familiar scent of her black hair. "We have... Dax Novu on our side." murmured Kara, unable to overcome the strange feeling of saying that name. "We'll get them back."

Lena murmured something with her mouth closed, so low that Kara's brain could not understand her words.

"Sorry, what did you say?"

Her girlfriend breathed into her neck. "Nothing." she said in a tone that showed the opposite. "It's nothing."

Kara frowned. "...Did she hurt you?"

"No, she didn't hurt me." whispered Lena. "She allowed me to see some of my memories while she used my body. I don't think she wants to hurt me." Lena avoided her gaze. "But... Kara, I think she could hurt other people."

"It's not she who has killed, conspired and destroyed for centuries, but the other one." said Kara softly but firmly. "They won't stop until they kill us all... We can't let that happen, Lena, we can't allow it." Lena looked so hopeless that the blonde felt a pang in her heart. Her mind could not help remembering the words of the Entity, her red eyes unable to meet her own. "And I think there's only one way to achieve it."

Her girlfriend looked at her with exhausted eyes.

"Lena... we have to release her."

Lena's face froze in horror. "One thousand five hundred people died to prevent her being released and you want to release her?"

"That's what Lutessa told you." answered Kara taking her hands in hers. "Those people didn't die for a greater good, Lena. What Lutessa told you is a lie. Killing people can never be an answer. You're not dangerous, nor a threat... Your death wouldn't solve anything". she put her hands on her cheeks, trying to get Lena to look into her eyes. "The problem here is... the problem here is that our world, everything we know, is governed by people who murder little children to please a horrible being." Kara caressed her cheek. "And I don't know about you, Potsticker, but I can't bear to know that we live in such a place."

Lena opened her mouth to say something she never got to express, because that was the moment when the screens lit up in red. Kara had only a second to understand what was going on before the deafening voice echoed throughout the room.

 _ ***Alert* *Alert* *Alert* *Alert***_

Lena gritted her teeth and put her hands to her ears, trying to save her human hearing from such a deafening noise.

 _ ***'Flying objects approaching. Flying objects approaching. Flying objects-'***_

"Kelex!" shouted Kara.

The robot appeared at the door. _'Kara Zor-El?'_

"Turn off the alarm!" The noise ceased. Kara watched Lena gasp with relief, her eyes fixed on the golden robot. "Kelex, activate the panoramic camera."

The red dot that represented the Fortress appeared on the screen. _But what...?_ Kara's heart leapt to her chest as she saw many big green dots around them. _No._ She counted them quickly. _Thirty._

"Rao's shit!" she exclaimed, stumbling over the chair in her hurry to stand up. Lena looked at her with worried eyes. "Stay here, don't move."

Kara ran out of the Data room, crossing the hallway in less than a second. _It's not possible._ Her feet stopped sharply in the middle of the main hall, inches from the statues of her aunt and uncle, leaving marks on the crystal floor. The Kryptonian closed her eyes and calmed her breathing, letting her senses expand around her. _Kelex's engine. Lena's breathing_. Kara inhaled deeply again, getting her super hearing out of the Fortress. _Penguins eating next to the Arctic sea. Seals sleeping on ice._ At last her ears caught up to what she was looking for. _Engines._ Thirty planes of small size, but heavy as if they were made of lead.

Kara opened her eyes, gritting her teeth.

"Kelex!" shouted the Kryptonian, pouncing on her cousin's trophies. _There has to be something useful here, heck, Kal._ "Activate the security system! Turn off the lighting system! Turn off the heat system!"

Kara found a small lantern behind Kal's old Legion ring. _A lantern here? What the heck?_ She noticed that it had the words _**'for my son on his birthday, this was my father's. Dad.'**_ _Of course, Jonathan._ Kara put it in her pocket. _Lena will need it._

The lights on the walls went out.

Kara's pupils dilated, detecting the tiny particles of light around her, allowing her to see where she was going. Scanning around her, she could not help feeling a pang of frustration when she found nothing more that could be useful in the main room. _Kal, I'm sure Uncle Jor put a little teleporter on your pod. Was it too much to ask you to leave it where I could find it?_ Kara grunted and ran back to the Data room, the walls looking like the limits of a cage in the dark.

Lena's eyes were closed, her hands palpating the edge of the table. Her heartbeat was slightly accelerated.

Kara approached softly. "Lena."

"Ah!" her girlfriend gasped, jumping a little. "Fuck, Kara, I've asked you a thousand times not to be so silent!" Lena reached for her hand in the darkness. "What's going on? Why did the lights go out?"

"We have to go." she whispered. "They have found us."

Kara heard her heart speed up. "I can't see anything."

"I can." Kara took her by her waist, guiding her toward the door. "Wait a little, I have a lantern for you in my pocket. Kelex, send a message to Kal, tell him we've been found. Tell him to come immediately."

Kara guided her girlfriend down the Fortress hallway, very different in the underground darkness _. No one knows where this place is, how the heck did they find us?_ They reached the main room, Lena stumbling slightly on the statue of her Aunt Lara. "The Fortress has a back exit. We'll go down to the underground chambers and go out there."

"K-Kara." Lena's teeth chattered. "I really don't want to add another problem, but I'm freezing."

 _Rao's shit, of course._ Kara hated the cold because it caused her discomfort, but Lena hated it more because she needed to survive. The Kryptonian used her heat vision on her own hands, lighting it all for a second, managing to get a sideways glance on Lena's frightened face. Once her hands were warm enough, Kara rubbed her girlfriend's arms and back. "Sorry, I had to turn off the heating system. They could detect us."

"It's okay."

Kara kissed her right eye. "Let's go from here."

"They can't get in, can they?"

"Lillian already managed to breach the security system before. I won't take any chances." she said, circling Lena with her arm to move her forward.

"Kara... your Fortress."

"My cousin's Fortress. I never liked coming to this place, it's not important." Both women reached the other end of the wall. Kara pushed it slightly, listening to the _**graaasck**_ of the wall sagging under her weight. "There's nothing here-"

 _The sphere._

Kara stumbled. "Darn."

"Kara?"

The blonde took the lantern out of her pocket. "Take this, but don't turn it on unless it's absolutely necessary."

"Kara..."

The sound of the engines approaching reached her ears. "I'll be back in a second." The Kryptonian rushed to the infirmary, the place where she had left her family heirloom when she had added Alex's name. _I need it._ The distant glow of her grandfather's smile came to her mind. _It's the only thing in the whole Fortress that matters to me. I can't leave without the sphere._

Kara ran inside the dark infirmary, trying to use her ears to help her eyes in the dark. The bed where Lena had been before had her scent. She jumped on it, kneeling beside the bedside table on the other side, searching for the sphere all over the surface. _Rao's shit, it's not here!_ She put her ear to the floor, trying to feel the soft vibration of the sphere. _There it is._ It had fallen down beside the off panel. Kara reached out quickly to take it, getting to her feet as she slipped it into her pocket next to Alex's Snitch. _Now I've to get back to Le-_

 _ ***BUUUUM***_ a deafening thunder shook the Fortress like a small earthquake. Kara tripped and hit her head against the wall as she was going out the door. _Shit._

 _ ***BUUUUUM* *BUUUUUUM***_

 _They're throwing bombs._ She stood up. _Lena._

Kara almost tripped again when another small earthquake ( _HEEECK_ ) shook the Fortress. She reached the main room. Kal's trophies were falling from their pillars, crashing to the floor, some of them breaking into pieces with _**crashs**_ and _**plashs**_. Lena was leaning against the wall, trying to find something to hold on to. "Lena, don't turn the lantern on! I'm here!" she almost tripped again. "I'm here!"

 _ ***BROOOOOOOOOM ***_

A bomb far more potent than the others hit the ceiling, just below the statues of her uncle and aunt. The two giants staggered noisily, as if they were dancing in a drunken stupor.

"Kara! Where are you!?"

"Here! Don't turn the lantern on! They're...!"

 _ ***BROOOOOOOOOM***_

Kara's eyes failed to see it, but her ears caught with perfect clarity the sound of Jor-El's statue losing its balance and falling forward, to where a Lena unable to see was still waiting for her clinging to the wall.

 _"LENA!"_

Kara ran at full speed, holding a race against her uncle's statue. Her right hand managed to cling to her girlfriend's shirt and pull her with a force that almost made her fly away. The force of the movement made Kara slightly lose her balance for less than a second, enough for her uncle's giant head ( _ **PRAAAM**_ ) to crush her right leg and make her fall to the ground. "Aaaay!" The statue had shattered the floor beneath her. _The exit_. Kara felt the pain in her leg mingling with the familiar sense of frustration. _The statue's blocking the exit._

 _"KARA!"_ shouted Lena in the darkness around her. "Kara, where are you!? What happened!?"

"I'm... two meters ahead of you." gasped Kara, seeing with her alien eyes that Lena was trying to get to her feet. "My uncle's statue fell, my leg is trapped underneath." Lena could not stand up in the dark. "Don't get up, I think the bombing isn't over. Crawl up to me... follow the sound of my voice...Very good, Potsticker, just a little more... here."

Lena's hands clung to her shoulders like two hawk claws. "We have to get you out."

"Pull my torso with all your force." whispered Kara. "It's Kryptonian crystal. You can't move the statue, but you can move me."

"But your leg..."

"My leg is fine." lied Kara. "Hold my torso and pull at it with all your might."

The Kryptonian felt Lena's icy trembling hands clinging to her torso, surrounding her breasts ( _darn her skin is very cold she's freezing_ ). The brunette pulled at her with all the force of her small body, managing to move Kara the millimeters she needed _. RAO'S SHIT._ Her foot ached as if it had been hit with a Kryptonite anvil, her fingers nailing to the crystal floor, trying to withstand the pain. Using her other leg, Kara kicked her uncle's statue with all her strengh, freeing herself and collapsing into Lena's icy arms.

"Kara...?"

"I'm okay." _My foot is injured_. "I'm okay, I just need a moment."

Lena hugged her so tightly that Kara could almost feel it. "I think the exit is blocked. I don't know, I can't see."

"Yes, the statue's blocking it... I'll move it, just give me a..."

 _*Bap*_

 _*Bap*_

 _*Bap*_

 _*Bap*_

Kara raised her head from Lena's lap at the dry sound she heard, coming from the Fortress's ceiling.

"What's happening?" murmured Lena.

"I hear a dry sound coming from the ceiling." said Kara. "That sounds like steps, like someone is walking on..."

 _ ***'Hello Hello!'***_

The rumble of the voice in the megaphone hurt Kara's sensitive eardrums. Lena tensed beneath her. _It's not possible, no human noise can cross the walls._ Kara concentrated her senses on Lena's breathing, a sound that was interrupted when her girlfriend whispered _'Teague'_.

 _ ***'Aren't you cold in there? Don't worry, we're about to warm the place up! Unless, of course, Kara Zor-El gives us the Gap. Or better yet, she kills her by herself. We would save a lot of time.'***_ said the male voice in the megaphone.

Kara growled in rage. "Don't worry, Lena, nothing can break the walls."

 _ ***'And as surely Kara Zor-El is thinking 'I have an indestructible super Fortress, nah nah nah', let me tell you that perhaps your refuge is indestructible... But the Arctic ice on which it has its foundations? Mmm, nop. How do you think Atlantis sank, ladies?'***_

Kara's eyes widened in horror.

 _ ***'THE CRISIS HAS COME TO YOUR HOUSE, BABIES!'***_


	34. Women of Mist

**I received a couple of worried comments. I just want to remind you that I'm not the CW, I don't kill my favorite characters. I hate when my favorite characters die, I'm sure we all agree that that's unnecessary and a vile resource to cause emotions of sadness in the viewer/reader.**  
 **I want to do something better than that. I want you all to finish reading this fic with a smile on your faces c:**

* * *

 **The Half Demon Woman**

 **11:06 PM**

Raven refused to let her negative emotions alter her calm, as she had been doing all her life and as she would continue to do until the day she died. After all, Kate Kane would not be the last person to come to get answers from Wildfire's sister. The problem was that Starfire had not yet recovered enough to remember anything but the dark room where she had been locked up. _And the electroshocks._ But of course, for any Bat that could be an inconvenience to their tight schedules.

"She shouldn't be here." Kate's red tomato hair was moving to the fan's breeze. "She destroyed half of National City. Whatever your reasons, you put your team in danger by leaving her here. Hellenders isn't the DEO."

Raven narrowed her eyes. _The young bat is almost as demanding as the old one._ "I think I should remind you that it wasn't Starfire who destroyed National City, Ms Kane. She was used against her will."

"That's what her mouth says." Batwoman leaned forward, her skin almost as pale as Raven's. "Her body language says something else, and I find many inconsistencies in her story."

"Do you speak from your experience of being possessed? Your incident with that vampire was a very different affair." she replied coldly. "I told you that Starfire wasn't ready to speak yet. I tried to read her mind, but her pain is still too intense."

"Well, then she shouldn't be here, but somewhere where she can recover enough so that you can read her mind."

"And what is that place, Kate?" asked the head of Hellenders, leaning back in her chair. "With the authorities who'd kill her without hesitation? At the DEO? In the Batcave? Oh, because the Batcave is the perfect place for a kidnapping victim to overcome their traumas. I expected more support from your part."

The fury shone in her green eyes. "As a victim of kidnapping, let me tell you that the Tamaranean isn't trustworthy." she got to her feet. "You're convinced that she's a victim, but she could be a possible threat who's trying to deceive you. Someone wants to start a war, Roth, and my mission is to stop the war."

"And how do you plan to stop this one?"

Kate was about to respond, but was interrupted by the vibration of her cellphone. Pressing her lips, Batwoman took it and looked at the screen, her face not betraying any of her emotions.

Raven raised an eyebrow. "Let me guess, your old cousin needs you urgently."

"Maybe." Kate put away her phone. "I've got to go now, but this conversation isn't over, Raven."

Gotham's fighter turned and walked out the door, her blood red hair getting messy as she passed the fan. Raven waited for her to go away to sigh, rubbing her temples. _I don't know if she doesn't trust Starfire because she thinks she's pretending, or she doesn't trust me because I'm half demon._ Sometimes it was very hard to choose to do the right thing.

The dark haired woman picked up her own phone, her lips tightening as she tried to remember the number she needed. Once she got it, she waited ten seconds until the person answered the call. "Good evening, P... Yes, I know it's been a long time, but I really need you to do a job for me... Well, given the circumstances, there's no one more appropriate than you to do it... I need you find Eliza Danvers, Supergirl's adoptive mother."

* * *

 **The Psychopath**

 **11:08 PM**

"THE CRISIS HAS COME TO YOUR HOUSE, BABIES!"

Jason jumped on the ice floor a couple times, his boots making a dry sound. An icy wind blew from the north, from where an arctic sea reflected the lights of its long night. It was a hell of a cold place, but Jason felt the heat on his cheeks, a product of the childish excitement that shook his body. _This will be amazing!_ "Slade!"

A few yards to his right, Slade Wilson nodded stoically.

"Prepare the first twenty androids." his gaze fell on the frozen sea, a smile slowly forming on his lips. "And put another fifteen to pierce the sea. We'll finally use that hose we bought a year ago! Isn't it cool?"

Slade frowned in disgust, turning to return to the planes. "You better get out of there, Teague. You won't want to explode into a thousand pieces."

 _He's always so cheerful._ Jason exhaled his breath into the cold air, reveling in the little cloud he created. Grinning happily, he started his way back to the main aircraft, making sure his footsteps were sonorous enough for the Kryptonian to hear them. "Ready to play chess, Tess?" he asked, putting a hand on the headset in his ear.

 _'Get out of there at once.'_

 _She's always so funny._ Jason shrugged. _Well, more fun for me._

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **11:08 PM**

 _ ***'THE CRISIS HAS COME TO YOUR HOUSE, BABIES!'***_

"Turn on the lantern." Kara's voice sounded strange to her own ears. "They know we're here, it doesn't matter anymore."

The halo of light of from the lantern hurt her eyes as Lena turned it on, her pupils shrinking immediately. A deafening noise rumbled in her ears _. It's Lena's heart_. Kara could smell the cold sweat pouring from her body, her teeth crashing against each other, her breath escaping from her parted lips when she saw the state of her leg.

"Kara, your leg..."

"I'll heal later, it's not important right now."

 _ ***BOOOOOOOOOOOOM***_

The crystal floor trembled beneath them, causing Lena to almost release the lantern. The light spun in an uncontrolled spiral of confusion, the intense cold mingling with the din. Kara could not stop her mind from going back to the day of the explosions in National City. _**(*BOOOOM* *BOOOOOM* *BOOOOM***_ _'Supergirl, help us!' 'Help!'_ ) _It wasn't me It wasn't me It wasn't me It wasn't me It wasn't_

"Kara!"

 _ ***BOOOOOOM***_ Lena almost fell next to the statue of Kara's uncle, but Kara held out her hand in time and managed to grab her by the wrist. Her hand felt the cold texture of the metal bracelet, almost as icy as her girlfriend's skin.

"Help me to get up", she said trying to stay calm.

Lena circled her waist, holding the lantern with her right hand. The beam of light directly illuminated her _***BOOOOOOM***_ worried face, turning it into a ghostly vision as she helped Kara to her feet. _Cold, she's very cold_. She drew her to her body, both to warm her and to _***BOOOOOM***_ stand up. The explosions coming from the ceiling never ceased to hurt her eardrums, producing deafening echoes that rumbled the glass walls. _***BOOOOOM* *BOOOOOM* *BOOOOOOM***_

 _ ***BOOOOOOOM***_ "The ceiling is indestructible! They can't enter!" shouted Kara so Lena could hear her in the middle of the cacophony.

"But we can't get out! He said they're going to sink the Fortress!"

 _ ***ZAM***_ Both turned to the darkness. Lena moved her lantern to light the spot where a violent din _***ZAM***_ came from behind the door.

"Kara, they're trying to destroy it!"

 _ ***ZAM***_

 _ ***ZAM***_

 _ ***ZAM***_

"The door will hold." Kara guided Lena's hand to aim the light at the statue. "We can only get out from here." _***ZAM***_

"Can you move the statue?"

"I can move it." _I have lifted an entire intergalactic prison, I can move the statue in spite of my leg, I can do it._ "Help me get to the head." _***BOOOOOOM***_

Both advanced to the left, at a maddeningly slow pace, the explosions shaking the place as if they were inside a blender. _Where is Kal?_ Kara's heart beat painfully in her chest, as if she had Kryptonite in her blood. _He should be here by now..._ Lena was holding her waist with steel grip, her icy breathing quickening in her effort to keep her balance. "Almost, just a little... more."

Kara put both hands on the nose of her uncle, biting her lip, due to the weight of the statue. _I need my other leg or I won't be able to hold it properly._

 _ ***ZAM* *ZAM***_ "Lena, listen to m- _ah!_ " another small earthquake almost made them fall. "Lena, I need you to be my left leg. Hold on to me with all your strength, honey, don't worry about lighting."

Lena held the lantern with her teeth and clung to Kara with all her strength, separating her legs to stand as firmly as possible.

"Okay, don't let go of me."

Kara inhaled that painful oxygen, filled with cold and smoke, and gritted her teeth at the thought of Lena's icy body helping her keep her balance. _C'mon, I have to destroy those idiots._ _***BOOOOOOM***_ Her hands clutched at the statue's nose. Kara hardened her muscles and tried to lift it with all her strength, managing to separate it a few inches from the floor. Her own growl irritated her throat. _C'MON, MOVE NOW!_ She used all her strength to lift the colossus of crystal away ( _ **'POOOOOOM'**_ ), her only healthy leg almost losing its balance, being caught by Lena.

Her girlfriend wrapped her arm around her shoulders. "C'mon, Kara."

Lena illuminated the dark tunnel with the lantern, as sinister as the jaws of an ice snake. They both rushed in, Kara advancing with one foot and leaning on her girlfriend _***ZAM* *ZAM***_. The cold was emanating from all sides; from the walls, from the floor, from Lena _. Shit._ The light from the lantern made it easier to see where they were going, but due to the explosions her super senses were slightly altered.

The path was divided into three tunnels. "Where?" asked Lena.

"To the left."

The cold got inside Kara's leg, like hundreds of tiny needles digging into her wound. As much as they walked, the bombs were still ringing as loudly as if they were exploding next to their ears. A distant chirp accompanied the din, as if a surface were ripping. _Sounds like..._

 _ ***CRASSSHHHH***_

"Oh my God, Kara, what was that?!"

"My Aunt Lara." she answered, still advancing as fast as possible. "The statue has just fallen on the right wall." _Kal won't be happy_. "There's a ramp a few meters ahead, we'll have to slide."

The light from the lantern lit the ramp.

Lena helped her sit on the ice as they reached the ramp. Kara let out a snort of discomfort as the frozen surface made contact with her body. _I have to warm Lena_. Her girlfriend sat down beside her and she pulled her into her arms, before they both slid down the ramp like children going down a slide. The wind moved her hair as if she were flying, and Kara prepared her healthy foot to receive the impact of the ground.

 _ ***SPLASH***_

"Ah-ahhhh f-fuck- f-f-fuck." The icy water soaked Lena completely. "Shi-shi -s-shit."

Kara stared in complete disbelief at the arctic water covering the entire lower part of her body. _The sea._ A sense of desperation struck her throat _. They're diverting the sea to try to drown us._ The wound on her leg was screaming under the cold water, but Kara gritted her teeth and leaned on Lena to get up. "We have to get to the exit."

Lena trembled like a leaf in the wind, the light of the lantern shaking in her restless hand. The drops of water in her hair were turning to ice. _Oh, fuck, her lips are purple._

"Not much further."

"D-Don't worry about me." her teeth chattered as she stood up. "I-I'm fine."

"No, you're not." Both advanced with painful slowness in the increasingly abundant water. "I'll heat the water, don't stop moving forward."

Lena's arm trembled on her waist when Kara used her heat vision in the water, lighting it all for a few seconds, catching sight of Lena's legs moving beneath. _The water's rising too fast, damn it!_ "C'mon, Lena. We have to get out." _We have to get out or Lena will freeze to death._

She used her vision in the water again, listening to an almost pleasurable moan escaping from her girlfriend's lips. _I can see the exit_. _Just three more meters._ The water reached their waists. _Two more meters_. Lena's breathing sounded as shrill as the explosions on the Fortress. _One more meter._ Kara extended her arm forward, ready to push the surface of the crystal door. _Almost... Almost..._

Her fingers found the cold smooth surface of the back exit. "Hold on, Lena." Kara pushed using her super strength, ready to feel the door give way beneath her weight.

But the door did not move.

"K-Kara, what's wrong?" asked the brunette with the water touching her breasts.

"The door isn't opening!" said Kara in disbelief. "It can't be." her fists crashed against the surface again. "Can't be!"

* * *

 **The Psychopath**

 **11:17 PM**

The twenty androids were aiming their guns at the large secret door, ready for the moment they would receive the signal to shoot. Jason could see the others androids through the glass of the mother ship, handling the huge underground hose that was filling the tunnels with icy water _. Wouldn't it be wonderful if they drowned like rats?_ Jason sighed, resting his face on his hand. _It's a shame that things are never so easy._

"You have to admit that my idea of using the sea was brilliant." Jason crossed his legs, looking at his boss at his side.

Tess did not even blink. "They're taking too long."

"Well, the door is blocked. They'll come out, I don't think they'll drown." Jason's gaze fell on her boss's wrist, frowning when he noticed a small white bandage. "What happened to your arm?"

"Some people still use blood locks." Tess carried the communicator to her lips. "Captain Wilson, make sure all the weapons point at the Gap. The target is the Gap, we don't care about the Kryptonian... I don't care for the androids either, you already have your orders."

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **11:21 PM**

Kara jerked her head out of the icy water, taking a breath of air and diving back in to hit the door. _OPEN UP! OPEN UP! OPEN UUUUP!_ Her fists smashed violently at the dwarf star surface. _YOU CAN'T BE BLOCKED, YOU CAN'T!_ She swam back to the surface. Lena was floating in the icy water, her head almost brushing against the roof of the tunnel. Her body temperature was too low and the lantern had stuck to her hand with ice around it, her breathing increasingly erratic. "Lena, wait a little, I've almost got it!" Kara's heart sank into her chest when she saw that Lena could not open her mouth to answer, the icy water touching her chin. She dived back into the water, her leg burning as though her bones had become Kryptonite. Her fists hit the door again, with desperate, violent, furious force. _OPEN-UP!_ Bubbles escaped her lips and nose. The water completely covered the tunnel. _OPEN UP, GODDAMMIT! OPEN UP NOW!_ Panic attacked her body when she realized she could barely feel the heat of Lena's body.

Her fist kept hitting the dwarf star door, each time with less force _. I can't open the door._ A groan escaped her throat, creating bubbles in front of her. _I can't save Lena_. She stopped hitting. _I have failed... I have failed, I have-_

 _No._

The faces of her friends emerged in her mind. Winn's smile, Alex's eyes, Cat's furious voice demanding her not to surrender _. I have to do it._ She clenched her fists and hit again, her fingers screaming at the hardness of the door. _I have to do it. I have to do it_. She could barely feel Lena. Her fingers stopped hurting. _I HAVE TO DO IT NOOOOW!_

 _ ***CRASH***_

The crystal wall around the door cracked. Kara hit again _***CRASH***_ , managing to enlarge the crack and the water began to seep to the other side. _Lena._ The Kryptonian hit four more times, putting all her strength in those desperate blows.

 _ ***PASSHHH***_

The wall broke, the door falling to the other side and getting lost in the void. The freezing water began to gush out through the huge hole. Kara was almost dragged by the force of the released current, clinging to the broken wall, her hand suffering from contact with the broken crystal. She managed to cling to Lena's body before the water dragged her into the void, her heart beating in fear at the coldness of her skin. Quickly, Kara grabbed her black hair and pulled her head out from under the water.

"Lena!" her heart was beating, but her eyes were closed and her lungs contracted. "Don't do this to me now." Kara used her heat vision on her own injured hands, so altered that she did not notice the fact that she could not feel them. She began to rub Lena with the heat in her hands, trying to get some reaction, a sign that she was regaining consciousness.

"C'mon, Lena. Don't scare me, I need you to open your eyes." The icy body beneath her hands began to tremble. Kara just kept rubbing it, bringing her hands to her face and to her neck to remove the pieces of ice. "C'mon, everything will be fine. I'll take your wet clothes off soon, but I need you now."

Lena gasped and slowly opened her eyes, her skin pale as a blank sheet and her lips purple as blackberries. "K-Kara..."

"Don't worry, everything will be fine. But now we have to go get out of here."

"Be-behind... you." stammered Lena.

The blonde turned to the huge hole in the wall where the door had been before. _No._ Her eyes widened with terror as she encountered numerous small robotic planes pointing their guns at them. _No. No._ In the larger one, a muscular man with a patch on his eye looked at them imperturbably, his lips pressed into a thin line. The man brought a communicator to his mouth. _'The target is the other girl, no one point at the Kryptonian.'_ Kara's heart froze. _'FIRE!'_

* * *

 **Diana of Nowhere**

 **?:?**

Diana watched Alex bite her lip as she tucked a strand of her hair that had gotten stuck on her face behind her ear, putting her right hand back on the oar to keep moving forward. _She's in no position to row._ Alex had to combine her strength with her own to lift it. And if that was not uncomfortable enough, they both had to synchronize their movements so that both ends of the oars would sink into the water at an uninterrupted pace. _I still can't believe we killed Charon._ Diana snorted, her nose already insensible to the stench of the blood. _A creature almost as old as the Earth, and Maggie only needed a second to kill him... Missy would have made an ironic comment if she were here._

"How is your arm?" whispered Diana, not to wake Maggie.

"Fine." answered the Agent, looking forward. _She doesn't seem very sure._ "I'll do a complete review on myself when we get out of here."

"You shouldn't be rowing."

"Maggie already took two of my shifts and you haven't taken a break." murmured Alex, watching as the fire of the river Phlegethon began to subside. "The wound doesn't hurt and doesn't bleed, there's no reason why I can't row too."

"The Shinigamis have an anesthetic on their teeth." Diana wrinkled her mouth, trying to forget the horrible taste for the thousandth time. "Their bite stops hurting after a while."

"As if they were giant leeches." Alex pursed her lips in a grimace of anger. Diana noticed for the first time that the grimace resembled that of her wife. "I can't stop thinking..."

"One thing at a time, Alex." whispered Diana. "It does no good torturing yourself being here. We'll find the Shinigami when we get back ho-National City." she felt a twinge in her heart. "We're almost at the Acheron."

Alex nodded in silence, still rowing.

 _I almost said 'home'._ Diana swallowed, her eyes fixed on the figure of Maggie sleeping in front of them. _But my home is gone forever. My plans to turn them into Amazons, my mother, Lena, Missy, Kara..._

 _There's nothing left._

Diana squeezed the oar, staring into the flames of the river growing weaker, so that Alex could not see the pair of tears falling from her eyes.

 _Artemis would remind me not to give up._ She sighed, imagining the serious voice of her wife. _('You have to concentrate on getting out of Tartarus, Princess. The rest can wait, even the pain.')_

"I know you may not be in the mood to hear it." whispered Alex, so low that the sound mingled with the movement of the oars. "But you're not alone. I failed Artemis, but I won't fail you."

"You didn't fail my wife, Alex. She admires and respects you a lot." said Diana, refusing to speak in past tense ( _Missy_ _Missy Missy Missy Missy please, I can't lose you_ ). "The one who failed her was me." the brunette rowed harder, forcing the Agent to do the same. "I've been failing her for decades." her hands turned white by the force of her grip. "I made my wife, the only person I've fallen in love with in my life, live in a place where everyone despised her for thirty years, and she never once complained." ( _'Love is not supposed to make us miserable, Princess. Love has to make us happy._ ') "I failed the love of my life, the other mother of my daughter." Diana stopped rowing abruptly. "She should be here with you, not me."

The boat continued to advance a little more, although neither was rowing. Diana refused to let the sobs escape her throat, staring at Maggie's boots. _Everything is the fault of my selfishness._ She closed her eyes, feeling the heat in her chest. _My entire family could be dead because of my selfishness._

She heard a noise beside her, and turned. Alex had removed the sword from her belt, looking at her with sad eyes. "You should have it."

Diana slightly raised the corner of her mouth, her fingers touching the 'A' of the hilt. "No, Alex. She gave it to you... Besides, it has an 'A', not a 'D'. And you're more worthy of that sword than anyone."

Both smiled slightly, a bittersweet understanding between them. Diana inhaled all the warm oxygen her lungs could withstand as they both rowed again, the faint gray light that marked the end of the Phlegethon increasingly abundant. Their arrival at the Acheron began to show, the air became colder, the flames began to die, a light breeze was blowing against their faces, and Diana's heart beat more painfully at the vicinity of the River of Woe.

"Aaarsh." in front of them, Maggie murmured in her sleep. "Watch out... two... smoke... bats."

Alex stopped rowing. "Maggie." she said aloud. The detective continued to sleep, incomprehensible whispers escaping her parted lips. "Maggie, babe, wake up."

But the little woman gave no sign of hearing her, her breathing accelerating as they drew nearer and nearer to the Acheron. Alex muttered something and got to her feet, clinging to the edge of the boat with her good arm, to keep her balance. The growing gray light lit her hair. "Maggie." she shook her a little. "Sweetie, wake up. Maggie."

The detective gasped as if she had been drowning, her hands catching Alex's good arm when she woke. Her bulging eyes moved around, scanning the new gray clarity. "Hell."

"Tartarus." said Diana softly, resting her face on her wrist.

"Another nightmare?" Alex stroked her face with her little finger, one of the few parts of her body that was not dirty.

"It's nothing." The detective sat up. "Is it my turn to row?"

"Not yet, Maggie." answered Diana sweetly. "There's still an hour... I think."

Maggie nodded, looking around at the new clarity. "And now where are we?"

"Entering the Acheron." Alex gave her a short kiss on the lips and returned next to Diana to continue rowing. "I think I prefer the Phlegethon." she said, her lips wrinkling.

Diana shrugged, looking around at all the evidence of the Agent's words. _The River of Woe has well earned its name._ The waters were brown, dirty as if they were rowing in a sewer. The sands on the banks were a muddy paste of gray, with withered herbs and dry trees, from which hung rotten fruits of a color between brown and black. _It looks like a swamp from an old horror movie._ Diana sniffed the scent of salt in the air, as if it were about to rain.

Alex squeezed the wound on her arm. "Are you seeing the same thing as me?"

"What are you watching?" asked her girlfriend.

"A landscape worthy of a Tim Burton movie." Alex wrinkled her nose. "Plants as withered as our house's."

"I see the same." Maggie stretched, getting rid of the last vestiges of her drowsiness. "And if only you remembered to water the plants from time to time..."

"At least there are no monsters here", the Agent added quickly. "Because there are no monsters here, right Diana?"

"No, there are no monsters." answered the brunette without stopping. "But there are ghosts."

Alex sighed with infinite weariness, drawing the sword from her belt with her good hand and leaving it on her knees.

The three continued on in silence, watching the gloomy landscape around them intently. _I don't see any ghost._ At her side, Alex had her obsidian eyes fixed on the trees, a small wrinkle on her forehead. Diana smiled a little. _You were right, my love, she's pretty like you. You two have the same dangerous look in your eyes._ Her gaze moved to Maggie, noticing the dark circles below her eyes, the lines of fatigue on her cheeks. The brunette pursed her lips, feeling a painful pang of worry _. Something is wrong with her._ Her eyes searched for the wound on her arm, almost fully healed. _She just changed her whole life for me... Of course something is wrong with her._ She bit her lip, her protective instinct running through her veins, burning up her blood. _I have to get them out of here._

Maggie opened her mouth slightly, looking at a distant point. "I see them."

Diana and Alex slowed their pace, turning to where the detective was pointing. The Amazon sighed. "Yes, there they are."

The dark figures grew closer and closer, acquiring human form before the brunette's eyes. _It's a large group._ The ghosts were on both sides of the river Acheron, gathered around the withered trees. Men, women, old men, thousands of solemn faces passing before her eyes uninterruptedly, like busts carved in marble. They were collecting the dead fruits from the trees, depositing them in baskets of the same color as the sand, carrying them on their backs and advancing downstream.

"All of them looks so... sad." said Maggie, craning her head like an owl to see them all.

Diana nodded slightly. "These are the souls who died with pending affairs. They will be under Hades's service until they resolve them... Right now they're collecting their Lord's food."

She heard Alex sigh. "As long as they don't get here…"

Maggie was opening her mouth to respond, turning her face to Alex, when her expression changed into a grimace of disbelief as she turned to look forward at lightning speed.

"Maggie?"

The detective rose to her feet, scrutinizing the right bank as the breeze moved her hair.

Alex stood up. "Maggie, did you see anything? What's wrong?"

"I thought I saw a blue dress and I thought..." she shook her head. "Nothing, forget it. It was silly."

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **11:26 PM**

 _'FIRE!'_

Kara threw herself on Lena, both falling to the icy wet floor of the cave. The rain of bullets ricocheted over her skin, impacting on all the walls like deadly flies. Her hands covered her girlfriend's head, her legs covering hers, trying to protect any part of her fragile body that could be hurt by the bullets. Lena gasped beneath her, her heart buzzing like a bee inside her chest. _I have to use my heat vision._ Two bullets hit her bad leg, without wounding her, but causing her much pain. _But if I move, Lena'll be discovered._

"We have to move!" shouted Lena.

"The sea is just below!" gasped Kara. "We have to jump!"

"No! you can't swim with one leg!"

 _ ***BAM***_

Kara was surprised to stop feeling the bullets against her skin. Believing it might be her chance, the Kryptonian turned her head to see what that explosion had been. _***BAM***_ two small planes exploded in pieces, the heat of their combustion reaching their cold skins. _What's going on?_ The aircrafts receded rapidly, like a flock of birds chased by an eagle. Kara scrambled to her feet, the pain in her leg like a distant echo from another world. Quickly, Lena managed to get to her feet too, panting like an eighty-year-old asthmatic woman, following Kara slowly to the edge to discover what was happening.

A large black plane had appeared out of nowhere, attacking the androids with hundreds of bombs that were firing from its wings. It moved as fast as lightning, as deadly as a predator. The bullets bounced off its black surface without causing any damage. Kara watched with astonishment as the aircraft knocked down three other enemies, blowing them up in the air, making them fall into the void and being lost forever in the frozen sea. The plane turned at full speed, flying toward the destroyed wall where they were.

"Back off." said Kara, pulling Lena away. "Back off. Back off!"

 _ ***PRASH***_

The plane got into the huge hole that was previously the wall. The pilot's black cockpit opened fluidly, revealing a red-haired woman with a black mask watching them with hurry on her face. "Get in, now!"

Kara obeyed, before reasoning if she could be a friend or foe, pulling Lena's hand and dragging her foot to the cockpit of the strange plane. They both let themselves fall inside, unable to move too much for the pain in their bodies and the cold in their skin. The red-haired woman closed the cabin and the plane sped into the air at full speed.

She heard Lena's breathing at her side, heavy as an old woman's. The blonde looked around, finding the black color of the seats, the glass; every little corner, except the red hair of the woman. "Who are you?"

"Someone who has come to help you." she answered without turning. "Hold on tight, I'll activate the thrusters."

Lena shook her head. "What-? _AH!_ "

The red-haired woman activated the thrusters and the plane increased in speed. Kara saw the landscape changing rapidly through the window, moving at the same pace as when flying with her super powers. "Are we running away?"

"Obviously I have skills, Supergirl, but there's not much else I can do against so many androids. They won't be able to follow us at this speed."

* * *

 **The Psychopath**

 **11:34 PM**

It was funny to hear Slade's new orders on the communicator. Jason waited with a smile until the man stopped screaming, looking curiously at the bandage on Tess's arm. "Slade, don't do any of that. I forbid you to pursue them."

 _'What?'_ said the captain in disbelief. _'They have destroyed five androids! I'll kill them with my own hands!'_

"Tell him to obey and to shut up." Tess rubbed her temples. "My head is aching."

"Mommy says shut your mouth and obey. Anyway, the plane is gone."

 _'What you say doesn't make any sense! We came to the North Pole to kill them and you don't want me to chase them!?'_

"Kill them?" Jason laughed. "Oh, Sladey, did you think killing a Kryptonian and the Gap with the medallion would be so easy? I admit I had hope they drowned, but it's worth dreaming, is it not?"

 _'Are you telling me that that bitch's appearance was planned?'_

"Ding Ding Ding! We have a winner!" Jason stretched out his arms. "Although I expected her cousin, it would have been much more spectacular."

 _'Fuck you, you little cockjockey. You made me look like an idiot. Why the hell didn't anyone tell me about this?'_

"It had to look like we were really trying to kill them. And we are, believe me. But when you play chess you have to have patience. Now it's the turn of our beloved bats." _I really wanted to see Batman._ "The rabbits have come out of the den, I would say this first move was a success."

 _'And what the hell is that supposed to mean? How will we kill the Gap now?'_

Jason looked at his fingernails. "Oh, just trust me." he smiled. "Who's your favorite killer? Hannibal Lecter or Norman Bates?"

* * *

 **Lena**

 **11:34 PM**

The brunette woman felt like her entire body was inside a washing machine, the cold in her chest so unbearably intense, as if she had never felt heat. _I hate the North Pole, with all my strength._ Her eyes were fixed on the red-haired woman, who was activating the autopilot.

She turned completely, staring at her and Kara. Her hand moved to her eyes, removing the cowl to reveal her face. She had aristocratic features and two huge green eyes like leaves in spring. Beside her, Kara blinked a couple of times, brushing a lock of wet hair from her eyes. "Wait, I know you. You're a friend of Maggie's."

"Ex-girlfriend." answered the woman. "I'm..."

"Katherine Kane." interrupted Lena, shivering slightly because of the cold. "I saw you at the Wayne Enterprises Christmas Gala last year. What the hell are you doing here?"

"Well, obviously I'm not taking a walk, Ms Luthor. Kara's cousin called Batman, and he called me." said the redhead.

Kara's face flashed with anger. "I ask my cousin for help and he sends a stranger instead of coming himself?" the corner of her mouth wrinkled. "I'm sorry. I-I don't mean to offend you, Ms Kane, I'm just having..."

"The worst week of your life, I figure." said the pale woman calmly. "Don't worry, it's understandable that you are a little pissed, with the way you're looking. We'll check your wounds in the Batcave. This plane is fast, we'll be there in half an hour."

"What?" murmured Lena. "Batcave?"

Katherine smiled sideways. "Maybe I should have mentioned it before. I'm Batwoman."

* * *

 **Just an (immortal) Detective with strange dreams**

 **?:?**

Maggie had not felt her arms so sore since her days at the Police Academy. If she closed her eyes, she could clearly hear the voice of the instructor Rolanda Hooch, the shrill sound of her whistle. _'Faster, Sawyer! Run faster!'_ So Maggie endured the pain in her arms like a big girl and continued rowing with her lips tight. _There's not much left, we've almost reached the Styx._

The temperature began to drop as they approached the last river. At her side, Alex kept her eyes fixed on the blurred white cloud that was visible at a short distance, only the sound of the oars hitting the water to kill the silence. Although it was Diana's turn to rest, the Amazon had the sacred Dagger of her people in her hands, watching its golden hilt as if it were hiding the secrets of the human mind. Maggie felt a sour taste in her mouth when she realized that she had seen Artemis do the same thing many times.

"Do you see anything strange, Maggie?" asked Alex, her voice slightly hoarse. "I see a white thing ahead of us. Can you see it too?"

"It looks like a cloud", the detective yawned.

"It's fog." murmured the brunette, putting her Dagger in her belt. "The river Styx is filled with fog. Some legends say it makes you experience visions."

Alex tugged at her dirty hair, her face burning with anger. "I hate Disney, they made it look so easy..."

 _When we get out of here, I'll buy a DVD of that movie just to burn it._ Maggie's lips tightened as she felt a twinge of pain in her neck. _And I'll spend two whole days in the tub._

The Underworld disappeared around them as the boat finally entered the river Styx, navigating through the fog with hesitant slowness. The fact that she could not see even her right hand made the detective very nervous. _How will we see where we're going?_ The fog was so thick, they could have cut it with a knife. Surprisingly, Maggie felt Alex's hand tightening on hers, each of her thousand concerns expressed in that single gesture. _She has gone through too much._ Maggie put that hand to her lips, kissing her little finger. _I love you so much._ "Everything will be fine, we'll get out of here."

"We can't row here." said Diana from somewhere ahead of her. "We could get caught in the sand accidentally. We'll have to let ourselves be dragged by the current."

Maggie could only imagine the frustration on Alex's face. And apparently Diana too. "We can use this time to rest. We will need the energy when we get there."

The detective listened as her girlfriend released the oar and leaned her back on the edge of the boat. Diana slipped to sit on Alex's left, Maggie did the same, her instinct telling her that it was best to stay as close as possible in that fog. Alex took her hand again, a blurred spot despite her proximity. Her girlfriend rested her head on her shoulder, and Maggie laid hers on her dirty hair.

"Diana, why did you come down to the Tartarus before?" Alex asked in a tired voice.

Maggie heard the Amazon yawn, her sight lost in the fog. "The first time I came down was because I wanted to resurrect my first friends, Salazar, Helga, Godric, and Rowena. I was only two hundred years old and I thought I could bring them back to life if I went down to get them." murmured the Amazon. "They were already in Elysium when I arrived."

Maggie felt as if a hot iron was pressing at the wound on her arm. "And the other times?"

"The last time was over thirty years ago." said Diana. "I tried... Well, I almost made a big mistake."

The fog began to move in front of Maggie. She frowned.

Alex lifted her head from her shoulder. "What did you do?"

"Diana, Alex." said Maggie aloud. "The fog is moving."

Alex's head creaked slightly from the rapidity of her movement. "I see nothing."

"I don't see anything either, Maggie."

"It's moving right in front of me." the detective endured the pain in her muscles and stood up. The fog in front of her did not stop moving, creating confusing figures before her eyes. One of them looked like a woman with a circle on her chest.

"What do you see?"

"I see a woman, I think she's a woman." answered the detective, watching the movement of the fog. "There are two little figures flying around her, like birds. No, no birds, birds don't have fangs... They're both fighting." said Maggie. "They're fighting around her and- One of them just killed the other, and it's- It's getting bigger... I think it's something like a vulture now. It's attacking the woman of smoke, trying to kill her."

Alex stood at her side. Maggie's throat was so dry, it felt like she hadn't drunk for years.

"The fog is changing... Now there are three women alike... They look familiar." Maggie narrowed her eyes. "Two of them are fighting, and the third is... She's taking advantage of their fight to attack them both from behind."

She felt a hand on her shoulder, and Diana's voice talking softly. "Go on, Maggie, tell us everything you see. The fog can't hurt us."

She bit her lip. "I see two people arguing. Both are... Both are powerful." Maggie did not understand how she knew, but she knew. "Both of them are fighting to get an eagle, but neither is winning... The man, yes, I think he's a man, he's cheating to beat the small woman."

The figures changed once again.

"I see a woman sitting in a circle, with another smaller circle on her chest." ( _How can it be possible that this is happening can't be I can't have visions_ ). "The woman is... slowly rising to her fe-ah!" she felt the sweat going down her back, her hand trembling slightly. "She just destroyed the big circle with one kick."

* * *

 **Lena**

 **00:12 AM**

Lena considered herself a woman difficult to surprise. Her last five years had been nothing more than one surprise after another. And yet, as she looked around, she could not help feeling that the edges of her reality were shaken to the foundations of everything she believed in, again.

The only thing that illuminated the main hall of the Batcave were the giant computers. Lena felt as if she were in the middle of a maze, dozens of tunnels spreading around. In one of them, she could see a black car, huge as if it were a tank. _Winn would have a heart attack if he were here._ A vitrine showed a black suit with a bat on its chest, and beside it was a red, green and yellow suit that looked as if it had been made for a teenager. Numerous pillars stretched across the main hall, containing objects as curious as absurd: a purple hat, a silver coin, a whip, a penguin-shaped cane, a joker card... _Men and their trophies._

Ms Kane had made her sit on a gray stretcher. Or at least she thought it was gray, it was not easy to know in the deep darkness of the Batcave. Then the redhead helped Kara reach for another stretcher, making her lean back and lift her swollen leg. "This looks bad." said the woman with blood-colored hair.

"I just need sunlight." gasped Kara, her breathing loud. "Much sunlight."

"Your hands don't look very good either."

Kara tried to move her fingers, twisting her mouth in a wince.

"A friend of the family is a doctor. Leslie Tompkins, she's trustworthy. I can call her if you want, Supergirl."

"Just Kara, please." her girlfriend murmured, her gaze distant on her bleeding fists. "It's not necessary for you to call a doctor, surely she wouldn't know how to help me. The only thing I need is sunlight."

Lena gritted her teeth, still shaking with cold. "I don't think we can find much of that in Gotham."

Ms Kane sighed, moving away from Kara to approach her. Batwoman looked at her for a long time, checking her in silence. "You're still shaking, you need heat." she turned away. "I'll fetch hot water."

 _ ***Pum***_

The three people turned to their left, where two small bright eyes watched them from the darkness. A black cat jumped out of the shadows, landing a few meters ahead of Lena. The animal looked at her with indifferent eyes and walked elegantly toward Kate, meowing against her leg.

The pale woman relaxed her posture. "Calm down, it's just Isis."

Kara looked at the animal in disbelief. "Batman has a cat?"

A brown door opened behind Kara, startling the brunette's exhausted nerves. Lena could see the dark silhouette of a very tall man and hear a deep voice like a ghost. "In fact, he has a lot of cats." The man approached the dim light. "You have to be careful not to step on them in the dark."

 _Holy Shit._

 _No_

 _This_

 _Is_

 _Impossible_

 _He can't be Batman_

Mr. Wayne looked at Kara with cold eyes, analyzing her as if it were the first time he saw a Kryptonian. Then his blue eyes stuck to Lena's, looking different from the eyes of the Bruce Wayne who had been L-Corp's main competition since Lena took over. _Those are the eyes of another person._

"It's good to see you again in one piece, Miss Luthor."

Lena felt her surprise blend with irritation. "Mr. Wayne."

"Batman." he said in a neutral voice. "The moment I enter this cave, I'm Batman."

Kara gasped tiredly. "Bruce Wayne is Batman." she shook her head. "The world has gone mad."

* * *

 **Diana of Nowhere**

 **?:?**

The light finished dying out when they finally got out from the river Styx. However, the black sand on either side of the water shone as if it were a starry night, illuminating their path and the desert around them. Diana looked at Alex and Maggie, both sitting very close together in silence, watching the horizon with exhausted eyes. "We're almost there, we'll have to walk about ten minutes to the castle."

Alex dropped her head on Maggie's chest.

The detective kept her eyes fixed on the bright black sand, similar to a starry sky. "The sand produces light."

"There's a very interesting and special story about this sand", sighed the brunette. "One that I'm too tired to tell."

Diana looked up beyond the sand, beyond the desert, where only a tiny spot on the horizon indicated the place where the castle stood. _Soon we will have to disembark._ She yawned, her tiredness making her eyes feel heavy. _I hope Hades is in a good mood._

"Diana, look" said Maggie, slowly rising.

The brunette stared at the far point the detective was gesturing at. Four dark figures stood on the bank of the river. They could easily be confused with the sand. Diana stood up, trying to verify what her instinct told her. _Ghosts._ She heard her companions stand up beside her. _They are waiting for us._

"What do you see?" asked Alex with hoarse voice.

Maggie put her hand on the hilt of her sword. "There are four dark figures ahead."

"They are ghosts under Hades's service." Diana breathed tiredly. "They're waiting for us."

"Great." sighed Alex. "I bet it will be fucking hard to kill ghosts."

Diana took her Dagger, despite knowing that it would be useless against a ghost. "If the God of the Underworld sent them, it's because he knew we were on our way. Don't get off the boat, they can't get in here once they've made the one-way trip."

The figure of the castle began to grow slowly in size, and with it, the four dark figures that resembled statues in the sand. Diana sighed deeply, wishing from the bottom of her heart not to have to fight them. _We're too tired._ One of the figures advanced in their encounter, approaching the edge of the river. _Our journey is over._

"Maggie, please help me row to the shore."

In less than five minutes, the boat was entering the bright black sand. Diana looked briefly upward, where nothingness extended into infinity, as frightening as if all were hanging headfirst in a pit of eternal darkness. The figure approached the boat, taking off the black hood to reveal a delicate woman's face, thick brown curls and eyes of a color between green and blue. Diana noticed that her dress was not really black, but a very dark blue.

 _'We were waiting for you.'_ said the ghost in a harmonious voice. _'The Lord of Death has sent us to lead them to his presence. He has been waiting all this time for your arrival.'_

Diana looked at her companions. Alex was staring at the castle in the distance, the only thing she could see. Maggie had a stony expression on her tired face, staring at the ghost as if she were about to throw herself upon her.

The Amazon looked back at the ghost. "Do you give me your word that you come with good intentions, Servant of Darkness?"

 _'I give it to you.'_ answered the woman in blue dress. _'Hades wishes to speak to you immediately.'_

Maggie stepped forward before Alex and Diana's eyes. "Were you on the river Acheron before?"

The ghost looked at her with expressionless eyes. _'There we gather our Lord's food.'_

Alex looked at her confused. "Maggie, what's going on? What is the ghost saying?"

She ignored her. "How long have you been dead?"

 _'I don't see how that is your business.'_

"More than thirty years? Forty? Do you remember how you died?"

 _'Human.'_ snarled the ghost. _'I told you that is none of your business.'_

"Can you at least tell me where you died?"

 _What is she doing? Does she knows her?_

 _'You would not know where that place is.'_ answered the ghost bitterly. _'It was far from here, out of your world.'_

"Alex." Maggie had that look in her eyes, that little girl's gaze putting together a jigsaw puzzle. "That hologram Kara usually talks to every once in a while. It's her mother, isn't it?"

 _'Kara?'_

"Maggie, what the heck?"

"What's your name and how did you die?"

The ghost looked at them in confusion. _'My name is Alura.'_ she said quietly. ' _My planet exploded. Did you say 'Kara'?'_

* * *

 **The Queen of Nothing**

 **Miami Beach**

Hippolyta woke up listening to the distant sound of the sea, moving away the turbulent dreams that enveloped her like a butterfly in a web. Her throat was sour, as if she had drunk liters of salt water. She recognized the soft surface of a bed beneath her body, a pillow beneath her head _. I must not open my eyes._ If she continued sleeping, it would all have been a nightmare. _My daughter and granddaughter are sleeping at the other end of the hallway. Later I will teach Lena how to ride. But I must not open my eyes. I must not open them._

The voice of her conscience, very similar to the one of Antiope, took care of returning her to reality. ( _'An Amazon doesn't lie to herself, Hippolyta.'_ )

The former Queen bit her lip and opened her eyes.

The ceiling was made of clear wood, with a strange artifact resembling a drop of milk hanging from it. The window next to the bed was open, letting in the sounds of the sea and the chill of the night. _Man's world._ Hippolyta sat up slowly in bed, feeling the stiffness in her bones. _I'm in Man's world._ Only in such a place could the walls be painted that yellow-orange color, undoubtedly the poor choice of a man. _A door, there's a door._

Her gaze fell on her body, finding that she was dressed in a manner very similar to her granddaughter's lover, blue pants and a white shirt. _Someone changed my clothes._ Her bare feet searched for the wooden floor, getting to her feet so quickly that a slight pain began to beat in her ears _. I need a weapon_. There was a strange thing on the bedside table, a ceramic vase with a fabric cylinder on its top. The former Queen took it firmly in her right hand.

The door was open, a sign that her captors had considered her weak enough to lock her. _Typical of men._ Hippolyta found herself in the middle of an illuminated hallway, white walls and ugly flowers on a small table to the left. A sound of voices came from further on, from the place where a blue light could be seen from beneath another door.

She opened it to take a look. On the other side, a man and a woman were sitting on a couch, staring at a box in front of them. _Oh Great Hera!_ Human voices came from that box. _They have people locked in there!_

 _"I don't understand this show."_ said the man. " _I don't even know if this is the past or the present."_

 _"It's the past, when Regina was still evil."_ answered the woman. " _Arg! And there's that idiot Tinker Bell, telling Regina that her soulmate is Robin Hood. Sometimes I hate this show."_

 _"Then let me change channels."_

 _"No."_

 _"Mera..."_

 _"No one is changing channels until Regina marries Emma!"_

Hippolyta felt a breath close to hers. She looked back, finding a young man with very long black hair and a delicate face _. "But what...?"_

 _ ***CRASH***_ The queen crashed the object in her hand on his head.

"Ahhhhahayayayaaay!"

She picked up one of the sharp pieces at full speed, putting it on the young man's throat. "Quiet." Hastened steps were approaching the door. "If you come close, I'll kill him!"

The door opened, revealing the surprised faces of a red-haired woman and ( _What?_ )

"King Arthur?"

The King of Atlantis looked at her in astonishment. "Well, Hippolyta, you haven't changed one bit." His gaze lowered to the broken piece of pottery. "Did you just attack Aqualad with a lamp?"

"Arthur, tell her to let me go!"

Aquaman sighed. "Would you care to release Garth? If he dies, there would be no one who can cook."

"Hey!"

Hippolyta released the young man. "My apologies, I thought..."

"Women." said Garth, turning and walking down the hallway. "All women are the same, every one of them is crazy! And don't expect me to make breakfast tomorrow!" _***Dram!***_ The young man slammed the door on the way out. The blonde felt the heat burning in her cheeks, feeling ridiculous for the first time in centuries.

King Arthur shook his head. "Always too sensitive."

"Arthur." said Hippolyta softly. "Seeing you gives me much joy. But, if you don't mind, how the Tartarus did I get here?"

"Mera and I were close to Themiscyra when we found you floating unconscious." Arthur pointed to the redhead at his side. "She's Mera, my fiancee."

"It's a pleasure." she held out her hand.

Hippolyta took it. "Equally."

"Were you trying to cross the ocean swimming?" asked Arthur, folding his arms.

"Of course not." she replied. "I was trying to get to the mainland, and to continue my way from there."

The King shrugged. "Please come in, we should continue this conversation in the living room."

Hippolyta followed her friend into the room. Curious objects occupied every corner, each stranger than the previous one. There was a small black rectangle on the table, a huge white box next to the door, a brown ( _numbers! those are numbers!_ ) circle hanging on the wall. Hippolyta sighed wearily. _Man's World always changes too fast._ She sat down on the couch in front of the noisy box, where a strange-looking prisoner was talking loudly.

 _'Not only are CatCo Magazine's statements the offensive raves of a woman who obviously should retire, but they are also lies trying to pit people against me, making it seem as if aliens are the poor victims of humans. Wrong. The aliens come illegally to our country, steal our jobs, threaten our people. And if there are good aliens, they are the ones who stay on their planets, because only the fugitive ones, the delinquents, come to Earth...'_

"Arthur, please turn off the television." said Mera twisting her mouth. "The stupidity of people of the surface doesn't cease to amaze me."

Aquaman took the black rectangle on the table and did as his fiancee asked. Before Hippolyta's astonished eyes, a black screen covered the extravagant-looking man. The former queen turned to the King. "Where are we?"

"In Miami, in my summer home." answered the Atlantean, rubbing his hands. "You were asleep for more than a week. Mera is a healer, she took care of you."

Hippolyta turned to the red-haired Atlantean. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Your Majesty."

"And now that you're awake..." Arthur put his hands on his knees. "Wouldn't you mind telling us what happened in Themiscyra? The truth, because every television channel has its own version... Oh, television is this box you see here, it serves as a means of communication."

The Amazon sighed. "There has been a revolution. They have dethroned me."

"We already know that." replied Arthur. "Now that you are awake, I can command my armies to invade Themiscyra and execute the traitors. This can't stay this way."

She smiled sadly. "You would have to kill everyone, my dear friend."

Mera opened her mouth in amazement. "Everyone?"

"Until the last of them." sighed the former Queen. "We are not talking about a small group of rebels. Each and every one of my sisters dethroned me." she looked at her hands. "I'm no longer Queen of anybody, Arthur."

"But somebody helped you escape..."

"For a debt, not because she wanted to save her Queen." the blonde looked at him. "I have become the Queen of Nothing."

Arthur rubbed his face, slowly touching his temples. "And what are you going to do?" his blue eyes fixed on hers. "How can I help you? I offer you housing at Atlantis, you don't have to be alone."

"I cannot do that, Arthur. I have to find my family." she smiled, touched by the loyalty of her friend. "My daughter disappeared, but I believe from the bottom of my heart that she managed to escape. Artemis was taken prisoner by some people calling themselves Veritas. And my granddaughter... my sweet granddaughter, she is being pursued by the monsters who kidnapped her mother."

"You mean Lena?"

"Do you know her?" she asked in surprise.

He nodded. "I met her and her blonde friend briefly. She looks a lot like Diana, even has the same competitive spirit in volleyball."

"Yes." she smiled. "She looks a lot like all the people I have loved the most... My daughter... My sister." The smile faded slowly. "If you really want to help me, Arthur, help me get to a place known as National City. I have to find my family, and to do that I need a person who has power in Man's World." Green eyes with yellow flecks emerged in her memory. "And I only know one person like that."

* * *

 **Raven (Rachel) Roth belongs to DC Comics**

 **Batwoman belongs to DC Comics**

 **Batman Belongs to DC Comics (Silver Age version, married to Catwoman and had a daughter, Helena Wayne... I hate Damien, sorry)**

 **Aquaman, Queen Mera & Aqualad (Garth) belongs to DC Comics**


	35. Members of Royalty

**The Psychopath**

 **1:46 AM**

Almost three hours after Kara Zor-El and the Gap left the North Pole, Slade's androids had finally managed to find the right path through the frozen underground tunnels. Teague had to be careful with the slippery floor. After falling for the third time, he gave up walking and used his powers to levitate a few inches from the floor, which was very useful when he had to climb the ramp.

Superman's secret lair was as dark as the mouth of a wolf, except for the light of the androids, scanning the place for possible threats. In front of Jason, a huge fallen statue looked at him with sinister accusing eyes, his crystal face as cold as ice. "Are you sure Superman didn't destroy the Kryptonite?"

 _'Versions of him from about forty Earths haven't._ ' Tess answered into the headset. _'Find the Kryptonite, Jason. It may be in an anti-radiation vault below the main room, or it may have been hidden beneath the foundations. But if it's there, find it.'_

"I'll find it," replied Jason, looking at Jor-El's crotch. _It seems the Kryptonians had it big._ "And if not, we can always steal Lord Technologies'. How much Kryptonite do you think we'll need to make handcuffs and a pair of swords?"

* * *

 _Lena was back in the hallway of L-Corp, her body light, as if it had become a feather. The red flash of the security camera watched her like a small macabre eye, causing her to shiver despite knowing that it was not a real camera. Her tongue was stuck to her palate. The brunette felt a deep misery running through her blood: nostalgia for her company, for her family, for her life. "Are you here?"_

 _"Yes," the voice came from behind Lena. Turning, she found Jess staring at the floor, her arms crossed. "I'm always around."_

 _"Yesterday we were about to die, and you didn't show up."_

 _"You were never about to die." She relaxed her arms. "You were with Kara. If you had been about to die, I would have saved you. But your beloved asked me for some space."_

 _Lena sighed in irritation, not wanting to talk to the creature that had been the cause of her life becoming a disaster._

 _"That was not my fault," said Jess softly._

 _"Leave me alone."_

 _Lena strode down the hall, clenching her fists without feeling any physical pressure in her hands. A thick anger was jammed in her chest, violent, making her want to break something, anything. She abruptly opened the first door she found, wishing she could escape the presence of the Entity._

 _What she saw made her sigh deeply, her anger deflating like a pricked balloon. She was in her nursery, watching as Artemis shook at her one-year-old version with a grimace of anger on her face. Baby Lena laughed happily, having fun with the quick movements._

 _"Stupid Batman," said Artemis to the smiling baby. "All he had to do was say 'Diana, I need you' and she flies to Gotham at full speed. The world had better be burning."_

 _Lena watched the black-haired baby start bouncing off the redhead's knee._

 _"You know I don't like to say bad words, but the bat is an egocentric pain in the ass."_

 _Lena crossed her arms. "We agree on that."_

 _Artemis took the baby in her arms, holding her close. "Do you know what that asshole dared to tell me when I was Wonder Woman? I was about to sit in that chair and the stupid bat said 'You can't sit there, that's Diana's chair.' Someday we'll spill hot oil over his head. What do you think?"_

 _As expected, the baby did not respond. Lena bit her lip, leaning her back against the wall. "I wouldn't take such drastic measures, but..."_

 ** _"Wake up."_**

 _"Ah!"_

* * *

 **Lena**

 **6:58 AM**

"Wake up."

"Ah!"

Lena blinked a couple of times, finding herself still on the stretcher where she had fallen asleep the day before. Her neck ached from sleeping in such an awkward position. _What time is it?_ Mr. Wayne was shaking Kara's shoulder gently. She was in stuck in restless sleep, with three blankets over her body. "Miss Danvers."

Kara opened her blue eyes, shining like two stars in the darkness. For a brief second, her confused face twitched in disbelief as she saw Mr. Wayne, before she composed herself and rose painfully. "What time is it?"

"Almost eight," answered the older man. "You fell asleep very soon after we finished our conversation yesterday. Kate wanted to wake you so you could go to bed, but I considered it wiser to let you rest."

 _Yes, you're a great host._ Lena sat up, trying not to think about the fact that she certainly looked horrible, in front of a person who had never been to her liking. "How long have you been awake?"

"I haven't slept," replied the tall man coldly. "I have started collecting information about Jason Teague. I have found nothing about Lutessa Lena Luthor yet, but I _will_. I have also gotten a sunbed for Miss Danvers."

"Thank you," whispered Kara weakly. "Um, Mr. Wayne, I don't want to abuse your hospitality, but do you know of any place where I can get...?"

"Food?" he asked. "I'm aware of your metabolism, Miss Danvers. Breakfast is waiting for us upstairs." The man pressed his lips together. "You may need help climbing the stairs."

"Where's Kate?" asked Lena, looking around for the redhead.

"She and my wife are taking care of looking for information on Jason Teague in the old police files," said Wayne looking into her eyes.

 _That look could freeze the ice._ "Do you have access to the police?"

"Of course not," answered the man with neutral voice, "that is why my wife has accompanied Kate. If someone can steal something in front of everyone, without being discovered, that's Selina."

Lena nodded and got off the stretcher, walking slowly toward Kara to help her get up. _She looks so pained._ Kara's leg looked much better than the day before, but she still bit her lip hard as she slung an arm around Lena, to gently support her weight. The brunette could not help but feel a violent protective instinct for that powerful being who had become her own guardian angel. Each wound on Kara felt like a slap in her face, a reminder that all the disasters around her were indirectly her fault.

"I have you, Puppy," Lena murmured in Kara's ear, helping her advance toward the door. "Slowly."

Mr. Wayne pursed his lips and took the Kryptonian's other arm, helping Lena help her. The brunette tried to suppress her impulse to push him away from Kara. _He's helping us, I must overcome my aversion._

"Clark called," said Bruce Wayne, opening the brown door to the stairs. "He asked me how..."

"If my cousin wants to know how I am, maybe he should come and see me for himself," growled Kara sharply.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **7:05 AM**

Climbing the long stairs was almost torture for the Kryptonian, but she was able to do so with the help of her girlfriend ( _she's not much better than I, she should be resting_ ) and Mr. Wayne ( _he's much stronger than he seems_ ). The owner of the house pressed a torch when they reached the top, causing the wall in front of them to move. Kara saw a slightly disarranged office appear before her eyes. The dim morning light slid weakly through the orange curtains. They had just emerged from behind a bookcase, on which was a picture of a man with mustache and a woman with short blond hair.

A fireplace warmed the room, illuminating the side of Mr. Wayne's face. "We're almost at the kitchen."

"It's okay."

Kara felt Lena clench her teeth as Mr. Wayne opened the door to the hall. The Kryptonian sighed as they advanced. _Bruce Wayne_. The smell of hot pancakes made her stomach shake violently, as if it had a life of its own. _Of all the people in the world, it had to be Bruce Wayne._ Kara did not have her own opinion of the millionaire, only going on what she knew as a journalist. But the mere mention of his name made Lena twitch like a cat.

And speaking of cats, that was the first thing Kara saw when they entered the white kitchen. Cats. Cats everywhere. There were at least three cats on the counter, two playing on the floor, and one in a corner drinking from a bowl of milk. After the initial surprise, the second thing she saw was a small black-haired girl with purple clothes sitting at the table, with a cat in her lap, in front of a variety of fruits, toast, juices, and pancakes.

The girl looked at them in confusion. "Daddy?"

"We have guests, Helena." Mr. Wayne and Lena helped her sit on a chair. "These are..."

"Supergirl!?" her face lit up. "Oh my God, you're Supergirl! Daddy, she's Supergirl!?"

Mr. Wayne sat down at the table. "Miss Danvers and Miss Luthor are our guests. Be good and kind."

"I can't believe it! You're Supergirl!"

Kara did her best to smile at the little girl. "You can call me Kara." _Anyway, it's no longer a secret._ "What's your name?"

"I-I'm Helena, and I'm your number one fan!" her face shone with joy. "It was amazing when you, Cat Grant and Maxine Lord defeated those bad Kryptonians!"

Kara blinked a couple of times. "Maxine Lord?"

"Um, yes," Helena shrugged. "Maxwell Lord says she no longer wants to pretend she's a man, to be able to be who she really is: a woman, and Daddy says we must respect the wishes of other people. So now it's Maxine Lord."

Kara glanced sideways at Lena, blinking confusedly at the unexpected news. _Our lives keep getting weirder and weirder._ "And that's very true, Helena," said Supergirl. "We must respect the wishes of others, even if we don't understand them."

The girl's face shone like a Christmas light. Kara had almost forgotten that there was a portion of society, especially the younger people, who still believed in her. Who considered her their hero. _I think I like Helena Wayne._

"And who are you?" Helena asked Lena curiously.

Lena smiled uncomfortably. "You can call me Lena."

"I think I've seen you on TV a couple of times," said the little girl, narrowing her eyes. "Are you Morgana Pendragon?"

Mr. Wayne looked at her seriously from behind his cup of coffee. "Helena, school."

"B-But, Supergirl..."

"I'll be here when you get back from school," said Kara sweetly. "We can talk later, if you want."

"Yes yes yes! I'd love to!" Helena got up from the chair, causing the cat on her lap to bolt. She hugged her father and kissed him on the cheek. "Bye Daddy."

"Behave yourself, Kitty."

Helena left the kitchen, her gaze never leaving Kara, and a smile painted on her lips. The blonde waved at her one last time.

"Helena was a surprise," said the old bat, Kara barely heard him in her haste to attack the pancakes. "Selina and I never expected to have children on our own, so we adopted three: Dick, Jason, and Tim. Helena was born when I turned forty-nine; we have the same birthday."

Lena nodded, watching the fruit salad she had put on her plate. "I once had a meeting with Dick Grayson-Wayne, he's an intelligent man, and I think he has a good heart."

"He has," he smiled for less than a second. "He's in Bludhaven now, taking over the company there. Jason's on vacation in Europe and Tim... Tim's in National City."

Kara paused, even though her stomach protested. "National City?"

"Investigating the attack on his own." The man took a sip of coffee. "He and I knew from the first moment that it wasn't a terrorist attack."

Lena looked at him neutrally. "As I told you yesterday, the perpetrators were Jason Teague and his boss, Tess Mercer."

"Your sister, Lutessa Luthor."

Lena's gaze could have frozen ice. "She's not my sister."

The man shrugged. "You're right, my apologies. It's still hard to get accustomed to the idea that you're not really a Luthor." He set the coffee cup on the table. "And much harder to your relationship with Diana."

"Don't get confused, Mr. Wayne. Diana is my mother," said Lena quietly. "But I'm still a Luthor."

He studied her silently, causing the pancakes to suddenly taste bitter in Kara's mouth. "Of course."

"So..," said Kara trying to break the ice. "You know Diana, Mr. Wayne."

The man took an apple. "Yes, we were friends thirty years ago, and we had a couple of phone conversations since she returned. She sounded happy. We planned to meet up after she returned from your week in Themiscyra." His face remained cold, but his gaze was sad. "Now that won't happen."

"She's alive," said Kara firmly, after swallowing a big bite of bread, not knowing if she was trying to convince Wayne, Lena, or herself. "Of course, it's convenient for the Amazons that we think our friends have died, but the Amazons haven't shown their bodies, unlike the Banas'. There's still a chance they are alive."

Bruce Wayne looked at her in silence, not knowing what to think. "I have reviewed the island's surroundings through several of my satellites. Diana, your sister, and Detective Sawyer didn't leave Themiscyra."

Lena looked at him calmly, cutting small pieces of bread with her hands. "There's the possibility that Lutessa ordered them to be taken through tunnels, or a submarine."

"That doesn't fit with what you told me about 'Veritas', _Miss Luthor_ ," he replied. "You have described them as a great sect of people who murder from the shadows to please their god. Such people don't take prisoners."

"It's not a god," said Lena. "It may be a bit difficult to understand, but it's something else. Something more powerful."

Kara slowly reached into her pocket, putting out Alex's golden Snitch. "This came flying to the Fortress yesterday afternoon. This is my sister's; it has to be a sign that they're alive."

Wayne looked suspiciously at the little winged ball. "Maybe," he sighed. "Or perhaps your sister sent it much earlier than you think, and it has taken all this time to get to you."

Lena left the bread. "Mr. Wayne, as long as there's the slightest possibility that they're alive, both Kara and I are going to look for them. If they're prisoners of Veritas, we will find a way to track down Lutessa and we will rescue them. The question is whether Kara and I are going to have your support or if we will have to do it on our own."

To Kara's surprise, Mr. Wayne united his gaze with hers. "You're a reporter. Tell me, honestly, do you think they're still alive?"

Kara did not hesitate for a second. "I think they have a great chance of being alive, not only because it's very difficult to kill my sister, but because they are worth more alive than dead."

"Then allow me to help you," said Wayne, looking at Kara. "And as powerful as Kara is, you two alone are too easy a target... No offense intended. And if there is a possibility that Diana is alive, looking for her is just what I'm going to do."

"She never talked about you, to be honest," said Lena in her business-woman voice.

"Do you talk about Supergirl to people who don't know her identity?"

"So," interrupted Kara. "What's next?"

Mr. Wayne took another sip of coffee. "Yesterday you told me the strange story of Veritas and Lutessa Luthor. But there's something that has caught my attention: how is it that an ancient sect is related to the Amazons?"

Kara remained slightly thoughtful, watching the orange juice in front of her. The woman at her side answered serenely. "We don't know exactly. We were looking for the Amazon that participated in my kidnapping when I was a baby. According to the recent events, it's more than obvious that the culprit wasn't reduced to a single Amazon." She drank from a glass of milk. "I have come to the conclusion that those who are certainly related to Veritas are Charis, Philomela and Alkyone, the royal guards who were in Bana-Mighdall on that day and now call themselves _The Circle_ ," she sighed, disappointment flooding her eyes. "Alkyone always treated me very kindly. I can't believe that..."

"She was trying to earn your trust." Mr. Wayne put both hands around his hot cup.

Lena's face did not change. "Please, Mr. Wayne, don't insult my intelligence. I've been dealing with people who were only looking to get something from me all my life." Lena looked at her hands, rubbing them together. "Alkyone didn't seek to gain my trust, and that's the most disconcerting thing. She had real appreciation for me." Lena looked at him.

Mr. Wayne sighed. "I've seen stranger things in my life."

"The Temple," said Kara aloud, looking up. "On our way to the Oracle, I found an old abandoned Temple, with three stone statues and a very large well, like Lillian's. One of the guards said that the statues were the first priestesses of Aletheia: Bellatrix, Andromeda, and Narcissa. She also said that it was the first Temple on the island. I don't know what it is, but my instinct tells me that this temple could be related to Veritas in something more than pure aesthetics."

Wayne nodded his head. "We'll investigate as best we can. I'll mention it to Kate when she gets back." His gaze fixed on Lena's chest, the silver medallion over her heart. "Maybe that medallion could be a clue too. If I'm not mistaken, it's magical, is not it? That's what we got, from the video of the explosion."

Kara bit her lip. "Actually..."

"It's magic, yes," interrupted Lena. "We found it months ago, one night when we went to search Luthor Manor. It belongs to Veritas; it's a kind of force field that protects the bearer. All this time I've kept it with me, to make sure our only clue was secure. Lutessa has one too."

"Are you telling me that Miss... Mercer blew up a building, causing thousands of deaths, and didn't take off your medallion first?" Wayne's voice was a mixture of irony and disbelief.

"I had it in my pocket," Lena said. "She didn't know I had it with me."

 _Is Lena lying? Why the heck is she lying? Doesn't she trust Bruce?_

He stared at her, weighing her words. "And to top it off, it's not possible to talk to your mother now."

"Which of the three?"

Mr. Wayne almost smiled. "I'd appreciate it if you didn't presume. You have three mothers more than me." He stood up. "I was referring to Lillian Luthor. And as far as I can see, we all have a lot of work ahead of us, and of course, you can't sleep in the Batcave anymore." He moved toward the door. "My butler is now on vacation in England, so I'll go and prepare one of the guest rooms for you. Miss Danvers, when you finish eating, the sunbed will be ready for you to use."

Kara waited until Wayne's footsteps came up the stairs, their sound becoming lower and lower. Once she was sure ( _can you be sure when it comes to Batman?_ ) that he was out of earshot, she swallowed her mouthful of pancake and turned to Lena. "Lena, why...?"

"Shh." She did not look away from her plate. "There might be cameras or microphones, even in the orange juice. We'll talk later," whispered the brunette.

Kara sighed tiredly. At least there was no doubt at all, Lena did not trust Bruce Wayne.

* * *

 **Cat Grant**

 **12:14 PM**

Cat listened to the sound of her fingernails crashing against the table like a rhythmic, restless pounding. Her cellphone trembled imperceptibly in her right hand, her eyes fixed on the screen. She refused to allow the statements of such a repulsive being as Ronald Dump to anger her. No, she was not angry. She was irritated, as if she had walked a mile with a stone in her shoes.

"Mom?" whispered Carter at her side, glancing at her. "You haven't touched your lunch."

Cat sighed, looking at her glass of fruit salad as if it were a new and strange object. "Sorry, Carter, there are a lot of ideas in my head lately."

"I know," his son answered loudly. "Um... you can talk to me, if you want."

Cat smiled, touched by her son, who had the time to interrupt his own battle to make sure she was alright. "I'm fine, Carter." Cat stroked his soft honey hair. "In fact, I was wondering... If I decided to do something crazy again, how would you feel about it?" _I don't want to do it if Carter is not comfortable with it._

"What kind of madness?" her son asked, worried. "We're not going to move again, are we? I-I know things are difficult, but without Kara here someone has to help people, she's counting on us."

"No, I don't mean to leave, sweetheart," said Cat, looking at him calmly. "I mean something that could change our lives for a while, maybe permanently. But that could do a lot of good around us... Like Kara would want."

"You're going to... help Kara?"

"In a certain way."

"What is it about?"

Cat smiled softly, taking his hand.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **12:58 PM**

The interior of the sunbed was totally white, unlike that of the DEO. It was also a little smaller, and it emitted a slight hum that only Kara's ears could perceive. _I think it's more powerful than the other one._ She wondered how Mr. Wayne had gotten it. For a nostalgic moment, she imagined J'onn trying to read Wayne's mind, deciding whether the businessman was trustworthy or not _. I wonder what sort of things he would find in his mind._

The pain struck her as unexpectedly as a slap, the sunbed feeling as suffocating as if it were a coffin and she had been buried alive. _J'onn Alex M'gann The baby._ Kara felt her hands shaking, her breathing heavy in her chest. For a moment she remembered Helena's voice saying goodbye to Wayne. ( _'Bye Daddy!'_ ). And she fervently wished, with every cell of her heart, that J'onn was here with her. _This is the third father who's disappeared._ She hugged herself with all her might, imagining that they were Alex's strong arms and not her own.

She had never felt more alone and lost.

"My name is Kara Zor-El," whispered the blonde in the solitude of the Batcave. "When I was a child, my planet Krypton was dying, because it was full of morons who preferred to go on with their comfortable lives instead of doing something to save our world. My mother was an intelligent judge who didn't react in time and let us all die, and my father was a high-ranking scientist who created biological weapons for possible wars. They sent me to Earth to protect my cousin, but my ship was knocked off-course and by the time I arrived, he had grown up to become a human with his own family in which he couldn't include me. He took me to my adoptive family, the Danverses, where I began to build a new home." Kara sobbed, her cheeks burning and her eyes wet. "Over time, I managed to have a stable life, more than anything thanks to my sister, the person who made Earth my home. I had a job, good friends, and for a few seconds my Aunt Astra. But there was an empty space in my heart that I tried to fill up by becoming Supergirl to help people. Then I met Lena Luthor, and I realized she had an empty space too, just like me. And I fell madly in love with her." She closed her eyes. "Everything was perfect; we even found Lena's mothers, two wonderful people whom we integrated as part of the family. My beloved Lena finally had the family that she always wanted and her happiness filled the empty space in my heart. Until Veritas appeared." Her fists clenched. "A cult who worship a being called Mobius, who controls all the Multiverse. They say that my girlfriend is dangerous. They have exposed me to the whole world, killed thousands of people, murdered Mon-El and James, have kidnapped my friends, and now they're chasing us to kill us. I was Supergirl." she sighed. "Now I'm a fugitive, and I'm going to destroy them for ruining my life."

* * *

 **The Fugitive**

 **1:33 PM**

Kara remained inside the sunbed with her eyes closed, feeling how her body and her powers were healed slowly. Her leg was not as sore as it had been before, but she still felt a slight discomfort when she tried to move it a little. _It'll heal._ What worried her were her hands. They did not hurt, but she had not been able to feel them all morning. _I must have damaged my nerves._

She tried to feel the cave around her, the sound of the bats on the ceiling, the distant meow of a pair of cats in the dark... She did not like it. It was too much darkness for someone whose strength came from the the light. _But we need them, so this is no time to complain._

A few small, almost imperceptible steps ( _Kate_ ) went down the stairs and into the cave. The footsteps stopped in front of the computers for sixteen seconds and then advanced toward the sunbed.

 ** _*Pom Pom Pom*_** Kate knocked lightly on the metal lid. _'Have you fallen asleep?'_

"No," replied Kara. "I'm recovering my strength."

 _'Where's Lena?'_

"Resting," she said. "Mr. Wayne asked her some questions about what happened in Themiscyra."

 _'He's worried about Diana.'_ Kate leaned on the sunbed. _'My old cousin is a very difficult person to read, but it's more than obvious that he's worried about what has happened. When Batman invites a person with superpowers to stay in his house, things have gotten serious.'_

"Doesn't he likes people with powers?"

 _'Not in his city.'_ Kate snorted sarcastically _. 'If you ask me, I think he has an inferiority complex or something.'_

"He told me you went to check the police files."

 _'Well, Batwoman did.'_ Kara heard the redhead folding her arms _. 'I set up a distraction so that most of the cops would leave the building, and Selina easily slipped to the archives. By the way, she's...'_

"Let me guess," sighed Kara. "Selina Kyle-Wayne is secretly Poison Ivy."

 _'Err, no.'_

"Red Alice."

 _'That's my sister.'_

"Robin."

 _'You know Robin is a boy, don't you?'_

"Harley Quinn?"

 _'What? No! That woman is crazy! And she's the Joker's girlfriend. How can you believe the Joker's girlfriend is secretly Batman's wife?'_

"Then I give up."

 _'Cats all over the house don't give you a clue?'_

Kara frowned. "Catwoman?"

 _'Bingo.'_

"But wasn't she a thief?"

 _'That was in the past. Now she only pretends to be one to infiltrate criminal circles and help us trap them from within. She's talking to Bruce now.'_ Kate stood up straight. _'Are you done? There's something I want you to see.'_

Kara opened the lid of the sunbed, her pupils widening as she took in the dim light of the Batcave. Ms Kane was wearing her Batwoman costume, her mask and wig in her right hand. In her left hand, the redhead had a yellow folder.

Kara rubbed her neck, sitting on the surface of the sunbed. "What's it about?"

Kate sat down beside her. "Our commissioner is an old-fashioned man. We can hack into the police's computer system to obtain information about the criminals of the country, but international affairs aren't on the net, so we had to get it manually." Kate handed her the folder. "Jason Teague is his real name, but three years ago he lived in France, Sweden and England for a few months, under the name of Jensen Ackles, and in each of those countries a series of kidnappings and murders were carried out in the LGBT community."

Kara opened the folder, finding a photo of Teague that seemed to be taken from a long distance. "There's not much information about him."

"He erased his footprints in every new country," said Kate. "All of his victims were brunet men. The bodies had no sign of violence, but they seemed to have had recent sexual intercourse."

Kara's heart fluttered. "He's a... rapist?"

Kate's gaze darkened. "According to the the French police investigations... The next page, Kara, where it says 'Hercules Poirot'... states he doesn't abuse his victims immediately, but first encloses the victim for a period of time ranging from two weeks to a month. Hercules Poirot suspected that Teague plays some kind of psychological game with his victims before abusing them. And that his executions are immediately after the consummation of the sexual act..." Kate seemed to realize the shaking of Kara's hand. "I'm sorry, I forgot that you may not be accustomed to the rough details."

"My friend Winn is brunet." Kara returned the file to Batwoman, trying to control her strength to not push her accidentally. "Is there anything else?"

"Maybe, yes," said Batwoman, in a softer voice. "A few days ago there was a robbery in Chicago, at the company EruditeCorp. They stole..."

"Simulation Serum, I saw the news," said Kara.

"The CEO's name is Beatrice Prior. She is Lillian Luthor's cousin." Kate looked into her eyes, her spring green gaze meeting hers. "And the lock only opens with the CEO's blood or that of her family. Unless Lillian Luthor woke up, the person who stole the serum used Lutessa's blood."

Kara gritted her teeth. "Why would Veritas want psychiatric serums?"

Batwoman sighed. "I bet it's not good at all." She fixed a lock of her hair. "This will need more research."

* * *

 **The Worried Girlfriend**

 **1:53 PM**

When Kara entered the bedroom, Lena was fresh out of the shower, a towel wrapped around her naked body. Her girlfriend was looking at a pile of clothes on the bed with critical eyes, a small wrinkle on her wet forehead. "Mrs. Wayne is much smaller than I. We will need new clothes."

Kara sat on the bed. "Did you rest well?"

"More or less, I couldn't sleep much," answered Lena. "Did the sunbed work?"

"I feel better." Kara shrugged. "I'll be totally fine tomorrow." Her girlfriend smiled slightly. "Lena, what...?"

"You need a bath."

Kara frowned. "We have to-"

"You have to bathe, you smell horrible."

 _Do I smell horrible?_ Before she could open her mouth, her girlfriend took her hand and pulled it. Kara allowed herself to be led into the bathroom, spacious and bright. Lena smiled at her calmly, a fake smile that begged her to wait.

"A bath is just what you need to relax."

Lena dropped her towel to the floor, revealing her beautiful body without any modesty. Then she unbuttoned Kara's shirt, letting it fall to the wet floor without breaking eye contact. Her pants and underwear followed the same fate, Lena's fingers gently brushing her skin. Her girlfriend turned on the shower, the hot water creating a cloud of steam over the tub. "Come, you'll like it."

Kara let herself be carried into the tub, the hot water relaxing her tense muscles. The sound of the drops crashing against the floor had a relaxing effect on her chaotic mind.

Lena took the soap, beginning to gently rub her girlfriend between her breasts. "Try to speak softly," she whispered.

"What's all this?"

"I don't trust Wayne," Lena lowered the soap down her belly, rubbing gently between her legs. "There might be cameras or microphones hidden everywhere. We'll have to talk here; the shower water will cover our voices."

Kara let out a muffled groan, Lena's hand between her legs spreading a pleasant warmth through her body. "Are you sure we can't trust Wayne? It won't be because you don't like him, right?"

"We can't trust any of them," whispered Lena, looking at her with her huge green eyes, her hair getting wet again in the shower. "We can't tell them about her."

 _Her._ Kara's mouth twisted in a grimace of distaste. _I don't like the way it sounds._

Lena put both hands on her wet shoulders, rubbing them gently. "What do you think will happen if we tell Wayne about the Crisis? He wouldn't try to help us, Kara. He would kill me with his own hands to get rid of the threat."

"I wouldn't let him."

"You couldn't stop him."

"He's just a human."

"He's Batman," said Lena firmly. "He has a reputation for doing what is necessary for the greater good. And right now, that means killing me."

The Kryptonian jerked her head back, letting the warm water flow down her neck. Lena pressed her bare body against hers, kissing the exact spot where her collarbone met her breasts. "We need them to find them."

"And to get rid of those bastards." The darkness of her thoughts was beginning to worry her. She could not remember the last time she had laughed carefreely. Kara knew it had been a few hours before the disaster, when Lena and she had stopped to play volleyball with the mermaids. But those memories looked like someone else's, not hers.

Lena began massaging her hips, rubbing hard muscles with her soft hands. Kara moaned quietly, pulling her into her arms to hide her face in the hollow of her shoulder.

"I'm scared."

"I know." Lena's hands danced down her ribs. "Me too."

"I've never been separated from Alex."

"We'll find them, things will get better."

"I'm afraid of losing you," she whispered. "I'm afraid of what I can do to protect you."

Lena stroked her face, rubbing her wet nose with Kara's. "We're in this together, Kara." She kissed her lightly. "Whatever the end of this brings, we will face it together."

Lena kissed her again, the taste of her tongue teasing waves of pleasure in Kara's throat. Her girlfriend bit her lips, demanding, hard, knowing she was unable to hurt the hard skin of the Kryptonian. Lena's hands rubbed her nipples, awakening them, tracing circles with her thumbs and gently massaging her breasts. Kara caressed her neck with her lips, delighted with the warmth of the woman in her arms. She needed to touch her, to hear the sounds of her body, to melt with her.

Kara grabbed her hips with possessive grip, controlling her strength, so as not to hurt Lena with the urgency of her desire. Her lips met Lena's again, delicate, with the delicious taste of fresh fruit. Her breasts pressed against hers felt too tempting, too good. "I need you."

Lena put her body against the wall, caressing her cheeks, her hips, greedy for more. Kara moaned, pleased to give her control. _I need to press something._ Kara felt her excitement mingle with fear of splitting Lena in half.

"Slower," moaned Kara, shivering. "I don't think I can control myself."

"We'll need a more comfortable position."

Slowly, both slid to the surface of the bathtub, Kara opening her legs for Lena to be positioned between them _. I'm going to break her._ Kara almost bit her tongue as she felt Lena's hot breath on her lips, her hands tightening on her buttocks. _I'm going to break her._ Kara buried her nails in her own legs, doing everything possible not to break any of the beautiful brunette's bones. Lena touched her clit with her index finger, tracing circles around the stimulated protuberance. Kara bit her lower lip, every cell of her body burning like a star. "Lena." _I'm going to break her._ Kara buried her nose in her wet black hair, trying to get everything, everything she could without hurting her. "I need you, please." She drew her closer, hands circling her torso. _I'm going to break her._ "Take me, please."

Kara let out a groan of relief as Lena's index finger moved inside her, caressing her warmly wet walls. Her hands drew Lena a little more, digging her nails into her own palms. Lena bit her throat, hard, but Kara barely felt a slight discomfort. Slowly, she added a second finger, moaning in pleasure ( _pain?_ ) when Kara grabbed her hips. "Lena."

Lena kissed her again, drinking the moans in her throat. Kara felt a surge of heat run through her body from her center. "Faster. _Ahhh._ " Lena increased the rhythm of the caress, spreading little kisses all over Kara's face _. I'm going to break her._ "More." Lena added even more speed, all that her human body could handle. Kara wrapped her arms around Lena, taking care not to press her, digging her nails into her own biceps. Her pleasure mingled with her pain. Lena's fingers reached that sweet spot and Kara threw her head back, almost breaking the bathroom wall. _I'm going to break her._ "L-Lena." She was so close, she could not help but groan with pleasure and fear. _I'm losing control._ "Lena, careful."

"Relax." Her caresses became torturously slow, reaching every corner of her body, as if it were preparing to explode. "Easy, Puppy."

"Lena," sighed Kara in an eager voice. "Watch out."

"I trust you."

 _I don't_. Lena bit her lips, her cheeks, her neck, finding her rhythm between her legs. _Don't break her._ Kara whimpered in need, longing for and fearing an orgasm at the same time. _Don't break her._ Lena's middle finger pressed her sweet spot, her breasts bouncing in front of Kara's eyes, her green gaze burning like a massive fire. "A-Ahh, Lena."

"It's okay," she whispered to Kara an inch from her lips. "I can take it, don't hold back."

Lena dug the nails of her other hand into the hard skin of her left buttock. Kara clenched her teeth, resisting with all her might the urge to bite her. _Don't break her_. Her walls contracted around Lena's fingers, the brunette letting out a slight sigh of pain. _Don't break her._ "Lena."

Lena kissed her, first her lower lip, then the upper one, breathing the same warm air. Her lips tasted like salt. "Lena."

Kara removed her arms from her torso, stroking her hair, grasping the strands of midnight tightly, careful not to pull on them. Her whole body relaxed as Lena flexed her fingers. "By Rao, Lena, please- _AH!_ "

Her orgasm was a surge of heavenly fire exploding in her center. Kara trembled, like an uncontrollable earthquake, her fingers curling in the air like claws, as far from Lena as possible. She let out a savage snarl at Lena's neck.

"I love you, Puppy." Lena kissed her eyelids, her cheekbones, everything her lips could find.

The energy in Kara's body slowly changed, from a desperate need to a pleasurable post-orgasm warmth. She did not move from where she was seated. "Did I hurt you?"

"Nope."

"Liar."

"Technically you haven't hurt me. My hand is just a little... stiff," Lena whispered into her hair. "And I think I can't get it out."

"I'm made of steel." Kara caressed her back, feeling the soft skin beneath her hands. "I miss our vibra- _Oh no._ "

"Kara?"

"Lena, what if you're right and there are cameras watching us at all times?"

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...Shit."

* * *

 **Cat Grant**

 **3:26 PM**

Cat refused to snort, even though she had a strong desire to do so. She drummed her fingers on the desk in her office. "Then I can count on your support, Maxwell?" asked Cat, on the phone.

 _'Maxine'_ , Lord answered in her new high voice. _' My name is Maxine now, Cat. A person with your sagacity should have already learned it. Or is it that this whole affair of our common enemy has disturbed you too much?'_

 _She may have changed sex, but she's still just as irritating._ "We will both benefit, I dare say that everyone would benefit. And you always said that your priority is the public welfare. What better way to demonstrate it than by supporting me?"

 _' Cat, we both know I'll support you'_ , replied the woman. _' Not because I particularly think it's a good idea, but because the alternative is much worse. And with so much disaster all around us, we have to do something to rebuild the city and get rid of that man who's no more than a stone in our shoe.'_

"I knew I could count on you, Max," Cat responded flirtily.

 _' Oh, don't even try, Cat, darling. I'm not a lesbian.'_ Maxine Lord laughed. _' You'll need a lot of money to start, who will be your second in command?'_

"Genevieve Trueman. I have already met her, and she's thrilled with the idea. She and I know it's the best chance she will have; we're both willing to sacrifice a few million," Cat said straightening in her chair. "And fortunately for both of us you are too, Max."

 _'When do you want to make the announcement?'_

"This very night."

 _'Wow, you don't beat around the bush. As soon as possible?'_

"Immediately."

 _' Then we'll see each other tonight at CatCo. We have a lot of work ahead of us. I hope you're really committed to what you're starting.'_

"You know me, Maxine, I love new challenges and win in everything I do." Cat smiled, remembering when she had said those words to Kara. "Until tonight."

Cat hung up the phone, feeling a rush of adrenaline run through her body, from her toes to the tips of her hair. She knew that feeling, that excitement at the unknown. She was addicted to new challenges, it made her feel alive and powerful. _Well, this was the easy part._ She sighed deeply. _Now comes the hard part._ Genevieve Trueman had said that it was very important to solve all the problems that the public domain might present, to not give the advantage to the press who could attack her. _And for that, now I have to call Adam_.

Cat grabbed her cellphone, beginning to dial the familiar number when a knock sounded on the door. Looking up, the Media Mogul found a man and a woman looking at her from behind the transparent door. Both wore hats and dark glasses. _What the hell?_ A sense of insecurity suddenly overcame her, and Cat looked past them to make sure there were people at the desks. _How the hell did these people get past the security guards?_ Cat opened the drawer of her desk, taking her pepper spray and sliding it into her pocket. "Enter."

The man and the woman entered her office, the woman taking off her black cap to release a cascade of sand-colored hair. Cat's wary smile evaporated. _Oh, my God._ In front of her, the supposedly dead Amazon Queen smiled calmly at her, the afternoon light reflecting on her white teeth. "Empress Cat."

Cat blinked a couple of times, regaining her composure. Thousands of questions crossed her mind at the sight of the Queen, from ' _Is_ _it really you?'_ to _'How did you escape?_ ', but instead of those coherent questions, the first thing that came out of her mouth was "How the hell did you get here?"

The man took off his cap and dark glasses, looking at her with his deep eyes. Cat noticed for the first time that he was very muscular. "I have escorted Her Majesty to your dominions, Empress Cat. I am King Arthur of Atlantis, sovereign of the Seven Oceans and Protector of the Marine World. We have come here to request your help and asylum for Queen Hippolyta of Themiscyra, the sole legitimate ruler of the Amazons, according to the laws of the Gods, men and-..."

Cat blinked a couple of times, a feeling of déjà vu wreaking havoc with her mind. She looked at the Queen again, noting impatience in those supernaturally violet eyes. The man continued talking.

"...Which brings us to appeal to your honor to..."

"Stop." Cat counted to five mentally. "Stop there, please. You are telling me you are a mermaid king..."

"I'm not a mermaid, my lady," said the man quietly. "That's a very common mistake."

"You are the king of... whatever you are, and you have come to ask me for a refuge? And you, how did you escape? Everyone thought you were dead." _Including me._

"That's a long story," she said quietly. "I know this is very sudden and I am bursting into your life without any warning, but you are the only person who can help me. I need to find my family."

Cat sighed, the air slowly leaving her lungs. "As you may have noticed, much of the city is destroyed. Some terrorists used an alien to destroy the city... Or so it seems." Cat pursed her lips, a feeling of doubt attacking her for the thousandth time. "They destroyed L-Corp."

"My granddaughter..."

"She escaped in time," Cat reassured the alarmed woman. "Kara took her to who knows where. No one knows where they are, but I'm sure they're fine. Kara defends her with her life."

"Lena..." Hippolyta clenched her fists. "They're after her."

"Who?"

"Veritas," said Hippolyta, looking into her eyes. "They are allied with the traitors who incited the revolution, and in all likelihood it was they who destroyed your kingdom, Empress Cat."

The journalistic instinct of the small woman was activated. "You say you know who's to blame for all this?" _Who's guilty for my son having nightmares about smoke and fire?_

"I only know their name," answered Hippolyta. "And it's Veritas."

"It's enough to start investigating."

"I do not want to lie to you, in all probability it will be dangerous."

"My only fear is to do nothing, Your Majesty. And without Kara and your daughter here, someone has to do something to stop opportunists who threaten to destroy everything we have struggled to achieve." _I will not let Kara's legacy go to hell._ "You can stay by my side if that's what you want, but I warn you things are going to get rough."

"An Amazon does not run away from battle," replied the Queen with her calm face. "If there is any way in which I can serve you in your war..."

"Can you protect someone?"

"I can protect anyone," she said. "Who do you want to protect?"

"My son," Cat answered with a sigh. "My... 'enemies' could try to use him to hurt me. They have already tried to kill us once, and unfortunately my instinct tells me it won't be the last time."

"I will protect the Prince with my life."

 _She speaks like a knight from the Middle Ages._ No doubt the Queen had some misconceptions that she would make sure to correct later. The important thing was that Cat now had crucial information. _Veritas._ Her mind went back to the screams of Carter's school as it exploded. _Our enemies are more complicated than they seemed at first sight._ It was going to be difficult to coordinate her time to try and track some of those people _. I have to talk to Snapper_. Her gaze returned to the other woman, the solemnity personified in her violet gaze.

The Atlantean King cleared his throat to get their attention. "If you don't mind the question, Empress, who are you fighting against?"

Cat leaned against her desk. "His name is Ronald Dump, and he threatens to destroy my country from its weak point: the government."

Out of the corner of her eye, Cat saw another person moving toward her office. Snapper Carr came in through the door, his gaze lost on a file, and without noticing the presence of the royals. "Cat, we need to talk about-" he looked up, noting the other two people. "Am I interrupting something important?"

"A job interview," Cat replied, looking at them all, sideways.

Hippolyta held out her hand. "I am-..."

"She's Polly Troy," said Cat looking at her fingernails. "My new personal assistant."

* * *

 **Lena**

 **8:56 PM**

Lena and Kara spent the rest of the afternoon reconstructing with Kate the events that had led to the explosion of L-Corp and the destruction of National City. The redhead filled a chalkboard with the known data, or rather that which Lena had made known. It had not been easy, despite Lena having confidence in her ability to hide things, as she had done all her life. But Kara? Kara was not accustomed to lying, and had always been bad at keeping secrets, even those of vital importance—like her secret identity. So Kara did not speak more than necessary. _But this won't be enough._

The words came to life on Kate's board, joined with arrows and circles. The words **_InGen_** and **_TM/LLL_** were together, joined with an arrow to **_L-Corp_ ** and **_LL/LOT_**. Other loose words occupied space on the board; words such as **_Veritas, The Circle_** , ** _Simulation Serum_** and ** _Wells_**. With Lena's help, Kate managed to hack into the InGen system to access the central computers. They found nothing about Lutessa's true identity, no fixed housing, no bank accounts. Nothing. It was as if Tess Mercer only existed in her nightmares.

"Someone cleaned this up," Kate said, stretching out in her chair. "It can't be that the information just disappeared, as if she died."

Lena pointed to the left of the screen. "Look at that," said the brunette. "The finances... The company was never on the brink of bankruptcy. It was a trap from the beginning."

Kate bit her lip. "It seems they make their plans well in advance."

 _'Kate'_ , a female voice came from the computer. Lena watched as Kara frowned. _'Dinner is ready.'_

"We're a bit busy, Selina," Batwoman replied without taking her eyes off the screen.

 _'You have a Kryptonian down there. That girl needs to eat',_ answered the female voice.

The pale woman sighed. "Go, I'll stay here a little longer," Kate directed at Kara, rubbing her eyes.

So Lena had no choice but to come up to dinner with Kara, even if she was not hungry, nor desirous of seeing Wayne. But on entering the dining room, the owner of the house was nowhere to be found. Instead, Helena Wayne was eating spaghetti with a look of concentration, until her eyes fell on Kara and her face lit up.

Selina Kyle-Wayne was sitting at the head of the table, looking at her calmly, a small black cat in her lap. The woman was small and thin, as if her body were made of elastic rather than flesh. Her short curly hair was as black as ink, a couple of shades darker than Lena's own hair. Her apple-green eyes studied them carefully, a small feline smile spreading over her lips. "We finally meet. I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself before, this has been a very busy day."

"Don't worry, Mrs. Wayne," said Lena politely. "Where is Mr. Wayne?"

"Please, just Selina," the woman responded, smiling slightly. "Bruce made a trip to New York at the last minute. He will be here tomorrow afternoon."

Lena frowned immediately. "Business trip?"

"Oh, no Miss Luthor. He's gone to infiltrate L-Corp," she said with all the normality of the world. "To seek information about your mother... Lillian," she added at the last moment.

Lena felt her blood begin to boil, poisoned with growing anxiety. "I've told him everything I know."

"I don't have a doubt," replied Catwoman. "And that's why he decided to go himself, to look for something you might have missed. He's that kind of detective."

Lena glanced at Kara, who had sat down in front of Helena, pretending she was not hearing every word exchanged between her girlfriend and the ex-thief. It was almost touching to see the brightness of the girl's gaze when she saw Kara, though Lena could not help feeling a generous amount of healthy apprehension towards the little Wayne.

"You look pale," Selina noted as Lena sat down at the table. "Sure you didn't catch a cold with that frozen water?"

"I'm sure." _What is this? Good cop, bad cop? What are the Waynes playing?_ "I am simply unable to sleep more than five hours in a row."

"Logical," said Selina, pricking a couple of spaghetti strands with her fork. "However, if you want your brain to function properly, you need at least six hours of sleep. In this house we are experts on sleepless nights."

"And at what moment does Mr. Wayne sleep?"

The ex-thief smiled with amusement. "Bruce can spend two days without sleep and run smoothly. Sometimes I think I married a vampire," she said with a laugh, a pair of wrinkles forming around her eyes. "I have to admit that this situation... has a been a little disorienting to us all. It's the first time that we voluntarily expose ourselves to people outside our family, which makes my husband a little grumpier than normal." Selina drank from a glass of wine. "But need is greater than comfort."

"Mummy." Helena caught her attention. "Can I turn on the TV? To show Supergirl my collection of videos? I want show her the fanvideo I made about her with the song 'That's my girl'."

Selina smiled slightly. "Helena, surely Kara doesn't want to see videos about herself."

"It's okay, Mrs. Wayne," Kara interjected after swallowing a big bite of spaghetti, with a small stain of sauce on her chin. "It doesn't bother me, and I love Firth Harmony."

"Yay!" said Helena before turning on the television.

Lena took a sip of water, resisting the temptation to taste the wine. Her eyes remained fixed on the older woman, trying to figure out her intentions from her body language. But like her husband, Mrs. Wayne was extremely difficult to read.

"We don't want to be a nuisance, either," said Lena cutting a piece of bread with her right hand. "And believe me when I say that we appreciate the help you offer us, even though your husband and I have never had the most cordial relationship..."

"That was before he knew you were the daughter of one of his friends," the other woman interrupted, tilting her head. "I've never seen him as... dismayed as when we saw the news on television. He was also quite frustrated, and with all the time he spent researching on his enemies, he was furious that he hadn't noticed it."

"Did he consider me one of his enemies?" Lena asked the question before she could stop herself.

Selina shrugged. "Not really, you were on the 'possible' list." She drank again. "Don't take it personally, I was on his 'mortal enemies' list. He kept an eye on all the Luthors, just in case. But now that he knows that you're really an Amazon, he may finally cease to be so stubborn."

"I am a Lu-..."

"Lena."

Kara's voice made the brunette turn to look at her, interrupting her words. Kara was staring at the television with wide eyes, the little Helena looking at her in confusion. _But what-?_ The CEO looked at the TV screen, her senses of alarm turning on immediately. _Cat Grant._ The woman was dressed in a professional dark green suit, a much more sober attire than her usual fashionable clothes. Her hair was tied in a ponytail. From the look of the room, Lena knew she was in the Conference Room, the same room where she had first seen her mother.

Grant was talking to the camera. * _"...And it's not too far-fetched to realize that we deserve better than that, a better society than that, one that is impossible to build by that kind of person. I'm here tonight to announce that we will not give up our country without fighting. You can still open your eyes and choose to build a better world."*_

 _Goddammit, what is this woman talking about?_

Kara groaned. "Cat, no..."

Miss Grant looked directly at the screen. Lena felt her gaze sink into her, as if she were only a few feet away. * _"I, Catherine Grant, hereby announce my candidacy for President of the United States."*_

* * *

 **The Truth**

 **9:16 PM**

 _*'I, Catherine Grant, hereby announce my candidacy for President of the United States.'*_

Lutessa turned off the television, watching the black screen for endless minutes. She gathered both her hands together and rested her chin on them, rubbing her face with her thumbs. _All controlled._ She sighed, closing her eyes. _She has to win. All controlled._

Tess looked out of the window, at the garden under the beautiful starry night. That day Palmier _(I refuse to call her Granny Goodness, she no longer has power over me)_ had informed her that the Martian had stopped resisting. It had taken a little longer than they had expected, it was never easy to control beings with telepathic powers. When she had asked about the Amazon, the old woman had only shrugged, saying she was still resisting. Lutessa could not help being interested in the Amazon's evolution _. Lena always had my mother and now I have hers. Sadly ironic._

 ** _*Knock Knock*_**

"Come in, Jason."

Teague entered the room, with a few dark circles under his eyes, his hair disheveled. A small patch of blood littered his right cheek, giving him the appearance of a boy who had spent all afternoon playing with his friends. "Okay, I've finished. Do you want the good news or the bad news first?"

"The bad." _You always have to hear the bad news first._

"I talked to my mother," Jason yawned. "Cat Grant has hired a bodyguard, so we can't go in and out of her house at our whim. Also, we can't follow Carter to his new school, Bruce Wayne's son is watching him."

"Well, I guess that's nothing that can't be fixed," Tess sighed. "And the good news?"

"Kryptonite handcuffs are already finished." He scratched his head. "And the sword is cooling down at this very moment. It'll be ready in an hour."

 _A whole universe died because I failed the first time._ Tess nodded slowly, fighting her headache. "Go get Powergirl ready."

* * *

 _My thoughts_

 _My wishes_

 _My heart_

 _They are not_

 _mine anymore._

 _Lena, get away from_

 _here._

 _Diana, it's not_

 _your fault_

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **?:?**

Maggie felt as if she had fallen into the book of Alice in Wonderland. She had felt this way since she woke up on that beach, a week ( _or two?_ ) ago. She felt as if a part of her had ceased to be human, and she did not know if that was because of her immortality or her surroundings. As if she were trapped in a dream that only grew longer and longer.

The golden door of the castle opened before Alura, flashes of gold shining in the darkness. No other ghost around them had taken off their hood. Maggie was grateful, her brain could not stand another thought. At her side, her poor girlfriend kept repeating Alura's name, without getting any reaction from the ghost. Diana had stayed in meditative silence the last ten minutes ( _or two hours?_ ).

The universe spread before her eyes.

The interior of the castle of Hades was a starry night, but not as if they were contemplating it from the Earth, but as if they were entering it. Darkness floated around them, thousands of stars, planets, moons, glowing like infinite fireflies.

"Maggie," gasped Alex at her side, pointing to the floor. "Please tell me you're seeing that too."

Maggie looked down, her eyes widening and her mouth drying. The Earth was below them, miles away, as if they were watching it from a spaceship. "It's not possible, we're underground," she said looking at Diana.

The brunette opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by another voice, deep and supernatural.

"It is not difficult for a God to manipulate things at His will."

Maggie looked up. A huge, mysterious figure was standing in front of them, next to an immense throne. His face remained in the shadows of a hood, but being tall as a giant, Maggie could see a pale skin, like a cloudy day—

and a small beard as black as a crow. The figure cocked his face towards Diana. ( _Is he smiling?)_ "You are back soon, Diana."

Diana's face betrayed no emotion. Slowly, she bent down until her knees touched the ( _floor?_ ). Instinctively, Maggie and Alex imitated her. "It's been over thirty years since the last time, Lord Hades."

"Little time for us, no doubt," replied Hades, his voice expressionless, with a touch of bitterness.

The former princess studied him carefully. "Why are you wearing a hood?"

"Take it as a gesture of consideration towards your mortal companion," he said turning to Alex. "This is the first mortal to get here, in all the time I have lived. If she beheld my face, her eyes would burn and she would never see the light of day again."

Alex stood completely still, but Maggie heard her sigh. "Thank you."

Hades nodded slightly. "But, of course, you have not come here to pay me a visit. Diana never comes unless she needs something."

"Before that, I need to know one thing." Diana sighed deeply. "My mother..."

"Hippolyta is not here," interrupted Hades. "Countless Amazons have arrived in the last few days, but your mother was not among them, Diana."

Wonder Woman let out a sigh of relief from the depths of her soul. The brunette looked up, staring at the hooded figure. "We have ended up in your kingdom by accident, Lord Hades. Liars and traitors have taken Themiscyra, and pushed us down the cliff over the river Cocytus, and we come before you to entreat you to give us a way to get out."

"From here you can go out Doom's Doorway."

"We cannot go back to Themiscyra," said Diana quietly. "They would kill us without delay. I beg you to give us an alternative way to get out of your kingdom."

Hades bowed slightly, his dark hood reflecting the light of the stars. "What has happened in Themiscyra has certainly been a massacre. Nearly one hundred and twenty Amazons have entered my domain... Most of them, murdered by your mortal friend." Hades glanced sideways at Alex. Maggie felt a shiver. "But I think you underestimate the gravity of the situation, daughter of Hippolyta."

Diana stood, staring at the God of Death with confused eyes.

"Surely you think that what happened in Themiscyra was an act of betrayal both to your family and to the Gods, that my siblings are going to punish your enemies. I am sorry to tell you that it is not so; the traitors acted under the consent of my brother Zeus."

The brunette's eyes widened with pain, her lips trembling slightly. "Why?"

Hades approached her a little. "Even the Gods have Gods," he said in a solemn voice. "And ours particularly detests your daughter."

"Lena?" asked Diana with a mixture of surprise and confusion. "She has nothing to do with this, she was only in Themiscyra for a week."

"She has everything to do with this," replied Hades. "The worlds as we know them are in danger thanks to that creature you gave life to, Diana. She is cursed; everyone who approaches her is cursed, because the Truth will never stop searching for her until they exterminate her. No matter who falls on the way."

"Who is the Truth?" asked Maggie, unable to contain herself.

The god set his gaze on her and _Oh,_ it felt horrible, as if a thick mist entered through her nose and poisoned her blood. "Veritas, what else could it be?" Maggie felt her hand tremble a little. "They answer directly to Him. The treacherous Amazons have allied with them... You have not the slightest idea of the disaster that Lena of Themiscyra has caused in the Gods' World. We can not intervene, and helping her would be like helping our enemy."

Maggie lowered her gaze to where Earth shone, green and blue, staring at Australia. Her mind was trying to function as a detective, trying to think of the god as a possible source of information. "What makes Lena so special?"

She thought she saw a smile beneath the hood. "She is a gap, that makes her sensitive to the influence of the Great Other. Among my brothers, She is known as the Watcher."

"You're telling me..," Diana said slowly, almost with hysteria, "...that all that has happened is because an evil being is controlling my daughter?"

"I do not think she is evil," said the god of death. "I have always been the stranger among my family and you know it, Diana. Your daughter is not a threat because she is going to wake up a war of good against evil, but because she is going to start a war of change. And there is nothing that the Gods fear more than change."

"So, you're telling us you won't let us out," said Alex quietly, staring at him.

Hades looked at her again, his eyes shining like stars under his hood. Maggie felt a violent instinct of protection, wanting to stand in front of Alex to keep her away from the god's gaze. "What a strange creature you are."

Alex nodded respectfully. "I hear that often, Lord Hades."

"If a mortal had dared to speak to my brother, he would have disintegrated him with a bolt of lightning," Hades sighed. "But I am not my brother, nor do I get along particularly well with him... nor with his orders." He looked at a point behind them. "Alura."

Maggie had almost forgotten the presence of the ghost of Kara's mother. Alura looked at the god of death with an apathetic face, the stars reflecting light in her dead eyes. "My Lord?"

"You will lead them to the exit door, your obligation is that they arrive safe and sound."

Maggie took a deep breath, forcing herself not to look away from the god. "My Lord, you have said that we are practically enemies of the gods. Why do you want to help us?"

Hades looked at her with his icy eyes, smiling slightly for the first time. "Because that change Lena of Themiscyra represents is something I have been wanting for over ten thousand years." He looked back at Diana. "A war is coming, Diana, and it is much bigger than you think. I wish you luck, Princess, even though we are likely to meet again very soon. But this time, you will not be able to leave my domains."

* * *

 **Bruce Wayne/Batman Belongs to DC Comics**  
 **Selina Kyle/Catwoman Belongs to DC Comics**  
 **Helena Wayne/ (Future) Huntress Belongs to DC Comics (No Damian, NEVER)**  
 **Arthur Curry/Aquaman Belongs to DC Comics**  
 **Hades Belongs to Greek Mithology**


	36. What ties you to the Earth?

_Diana felt the grass tickling her back, the fresh air flowing gently into her lungs. Her eyes were fixed on the sky, an infinite turquoise mantle monopolizing her attention. The wind moved the grass around her head, brushing her nose._

 _"It's beautiful, isn't it?" asked Artemis at her side._

 _Diana shifted her gaze from the sky and turned to her wife. She was laying on the grass beside her, her red hair mingling with the green grass, as green as her eyes looking at the sunless sky._

 _Diana smiled. "It's perfect." She held out her hand to touch hers. "Later we can take Lena for a walk, or to hunt. What do you think?"_

 _Artemis sighed, still smiling. "You know that will not happen, Princess."_

 _A pang of pain struck her heart for a second. "What does it matter? I'll wake up soon, let me enjoy this while I can."_

 _"You can't." Artemis turned to look at her. "It's unlike you to take refuge in dreams when reality needs you."_

 _"Just a little more."_

 _"No."_

 _"I miss you."_

 _"Lena needs you more than ever." Artemis touched her cheek with her index finger. "Our daughter has been alone for thirty years, you have to find her before those other people do."_

 _"I don't want to break again, Missy." Diana reached out to touch her red hair. "And this time you're not with me to remind me who I am. I don't even know if you're alive." She wanted to touch her face, but she felt that if she moved too much she could wake up. "And I no longer remember how to live without you."_

 _Artemis took her hand, resting her cheek on both joined hands. "I am always with you." A butterfly settled on her temple. "Lena is you and I together, all our virtues and none of our faults. You have to find her. Trust Alexandra and her capacities, help Maggie Sawyer get back to normal. And above all things, don't forget that you're not alone, Princess." Artemis was very close, so much so that Diana could see the two small freckles under her eyebrow._

 _She smiled wryly. "I'm not a princess anymore."_

 _Artemis winked at her. "You will always be my Princess."_

* * *

 **Diana of Nowhere**

 **?:?**

Before opening her eyes, Diana felt the itch of a few strands of hair tickling her nose. Her mind deceived her for a few minutes with the illusion that it was Artemis's hair, before reality hit her again. Her wife's hair smelled like rain and oats, not apples and blood.

The gray light gleamed as soon as she opened her eyes, her elbows slightly irritated by having fallen asleep on the sand. _But I wasn't tired._ Or maybe they just could not feel the weariness of their bodies. That did not mean they did not use up energy. _We'd all fallen asleep._ She was using Maggie's shoulder as a pillow, with Alex's black jacket covering her. Diana felt a small twinge of warmth and gratitude.

Slowly, she pushed her head away from Maggie's shoulder so as not to wake her, sitting on the sand. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Alex sleeping on the other side, her filthy hair spreading over her girlfriend's chest, her arms around Artemis's sword. _I'm amazed at how strong she is_. She did not remember ever meeting a mortal so strong in a long time. She could not help but wonder what Alex's fate would be. _('I want to be there when she becomes the Greatest.')_

 _Missy..._

Diana looked up from Alex's figure, finding the ghost of the woman ( _her name is Alura I can't believe she is Kara's mother_ ) watching them in silence, standing still in the sand. She is quite silent. Diana removed the bright sand from her short hair, standing serenely and walking toward the ghost.

Alura's face did not change in the least. _"I hope you have rested at last."_

"At last?"

 _"You were having nightmares until your companions went to sleep at your side."_

"I hate sleeping alone." _I can't sleep without Artemis._ "I'll thank them when they wake up." Diana tried unsuccessfully to remove the sand from her sandals. "How much have we advanced?"

The ghost shook her head slightly, raising her arm to point to what Diana thought was the west. _"My Lord's castle is still visible. We have not advanced a third of the way yet."_

 _I'm starting to hate the Underworld._ Diana nodded slightly, not taking her eyes off the ghost. In life she must have been a very solemn woman, since Alura had hardly looked them in the face or talked to them since leaving the castle. The brunette had seen many ghosts on her previous trips to the Underworld, but none had ever seemed so unfriendly. "How did you end up in our Underworld?"

 _"I don't know how,"_ answered Alura. _"I just remember watching Kara's pod move away into space... And then, a lot of heat."_ Her gaze fell on the sand, as if she were watching something in the brightness that the Amazon could not see.

Diana pursed her lips. "Do you see that young woman who is sleeping with the sword in her hand?" She pointed to Alex. "Her name is Alexandra. She and your daughter grew up together, loving each other like sisters. Why do you refuse to communicate with her? Maggie and I could help you ask her questions about Kara."

 _"I have nothing to ask."_ Alura turned, moving (sliding?) a couple of meters. _"In death I do not have the same emotions I had in life. I do not want to talk about the living."_

Diana watched her for a few seconds, wondering if death turned souls indifferent, or Alura simply had a reason not to want to talk to Alex.

* * *

 _I can't give up_

 _I can't give up_

 _I can't give up_

 _I'm sleepy_

 _I'm very_

 _sleepy_

* * *

 **Four days later...**

* * *

 **The Pretty Boy**

 **7:13 AM (Current Local Time in Scotland)**

Winn was certain that at some point in his life he had been more desperate, even though he could not remember when. Surely in his life, which included a killer father and multiple foster families, not to mention the enmity of many alien villains, there had been a moment worse than the present, a situation in which he had been more afraid. But Kara had always been there to save him, so Winn refused to panic.

However, it had been almost four days and Kara had not shown up.

Winn watched the room for the thousandth time, cornered next to the wall, where he could see everything around him. The bed where he refused to sleep was undone, the books were scattered all over the floor, his own smell of dirt tortured ( _I refuse to strip myself I won't do it)_ his nose. And the room seemed to get smaller and smaller and smaller and smaller and...

 _I know what you're doing._ Winn looked at the corners of the ceiling, the lamp, the walls. _He has not forgotten me I know he's playing with me I know Just wait until Alex gets your hands on you Kara will destroy your stupid face M'gann where is M'gann._

"I know what you're trying to do," whispered Winn. "But you're not going to get it. You're not going to drive me crazy. You don't know who I am, you don't know anything about me. I've survived worse things and you can't. drive me. crazy." He turned his hand into a fist. "You can't drive me crazy!"

 _ ***Pum***_ his fist hit the wall, the pain spreading rapidly through his hand. Winn clenched his teeth and refused to release the moisture behind his eyes. _Why haven't they found us yet? Where's M'gann?_

 _*Pum*_

Winn almost jumped in surprise when he heard a soft knocking on the wall. _What...?_ _*Pum* *Pum*_ the noise was repeated. _What is this?_ The brunet frowned, striking the wall with his other hand again. _***Pum Pum*** *Pum Pum Pum*_ The noise was repeated again. _Is this some trick?_

"Hello?" Winn hit the wall again. "Is anyone there? Hello?"

' _I'm here!' *PUM PUM PUM PUM PUM*_ Winn recoiled in astonishment as the blows were repeated wildly, desperately. _'Get me out of here! Get me out!'_

 _It can't be._ He leaned his ear against the wall. _How many people has this crazy kidnapped?_ He could hear the female voice with almost perfect clarity, which meant that the wall had to be much thinner than he believed at first. For a second his heart throbbed in the hope that it was M'gann, before it shrank to realize that the voice was much sharper than his friend's.

"Hey!" Winn shouted, trying to stay calm. "Don't shout like that! Someone could come."

 _'If I'm screaming it's because I want someone to come!'_

"Believe me, no one good would come," said Winn loudly, bringing his mouth closer to the wall. "You have to calm down, okay? These people are dangerous and totally crazy."

 _'No! I need to get out of here!'_ shouted the girl. _'I have to find my family!'_

"Were you with your family when they kidnapped you?"

 _'I-I don't know.'_ The voice on the other side broke. _'I-I know nothing. There are too many blurred things in my head. It was raining, a building was burning, and then I fell and then... then... Confused screams everything is so confusing I don't remember..."_

"Easy." Winn wanted to add something to comfort her, unable to find words that were not lies. "Keep calm. Easy."

 _'I'm sorry,'_ said the female voice softly. _'I don't usually lose control this way, but I'm...'_

"Desperate?"

 _'Yes.'_

"Me too," Winn shivered slightly. "You're the first voice I've heard in four days." _And if all this is a product of my imagination?_

 _'Four days?'_ Winn was not sure, but he thought he heard a gasp. _'I just woke up, the handcuffs are digging into my wrists and it hurts.'_

"Are you cuffed?"

 _'Yes, I can't move my arms or my legs,'_ said the girl. _'Somehow this shiny thing doesn't let me use my super strength.'_

Winn blinked a couple of times. 'You have super strength?'

 _'...I had,'_ the voice answered melancholy. _'I'm an alien. I'm Po-... I'm Karen.'_

Winn pursed his mouth, trying to imagine what Alex would do in this situation. "I'm Winn," said the technician, resting his forehead on the wall. "I work with aliens, precisely."

 _'Maybe the one who kidnapped us is some activist against aliens.'_

"I don't think so," Winn smiled sadly. "What planet are you from, Karen?"

The voice on the other side took her time to respond _'...One that was far away. My family died and I was sent here._ ' He heard a strange noise, like a buzzing sound. _'I came to Earth almost fifteen years ago, a woman hosted me and raised me with her children. They are my family, I have to get out of here to find them.'_

"We'll get out," said Winn confidently. "My friends must be looking for me right now. We'll find a way out of here, Karen, I promise."

Winn waited to hear the girl's response, but the seconds passed and no voice answered.

"Karen?" He knocked the wall again. "Karen, are you there? Karen?"

Silence

"Hello?" Winn hit the wall harder. "Karen? Please answer me, say something. I'm not imagining things. Karen!"

"Wow, you're a mess."

Winn turned abruptly, almost tripping over one of the books on the floor. Jason Teague was sitting on the couch with his legs crossed, reading a blue covered book. "Men who talk to themselves aren't attractive, Pretty Boy."

"You."

"Me." Jason tossed the book nonchalantly. "Did you miss me?"

Winn did not answer, remaining absolutely still, waiting for Teague to attack him. The blond rested his chin on his fist, looking at him with that half smile that Winn hated passionately.

"No threats or supplications?" Teague sighed, still smiling. "You're smart as well as cute, you know that won't work."

Winn did not open her mouth, refusing to give his enemy an answer. _I still own my silence._ He tightened his muscles, wishing he had Kara's super strength to crush the head of his kidnapper.

"Did the cat eat your tongue?" Teague stood up. "Would not you like me to eat it?" He bit his lip, looking at him from top to bottom. "I see, the cold shoulder. The Martian is also quite silent."

"Where is M'gann?" grunted Winn.

"I win!" He laughed cheerfully. "But honestly, who still cares about the Martian?"

"If you did something..."

"Stop." Teague cocked his head slightly, the smile still on his lips. "I don't like being threatened, much less with empty words, because you can't do anything to me."

"My friends will."

"Your friends aren't here, honey!" Jason spread his arms, looking around. "Unless Alex Danvers is under the bed or Kara is in the bathroom... It's just you and me."

Winn felt a violent rush of hatred all over his body, as he had not felt in a long time. _I want to kill him._ His hands turned into fists. _I want to kill him. I want to kill him._

"There they are." Teague sighed with complacency. "There are my man's eyes: full of hatred, murderous desires. Did you know that you have a murderer inside you, Winn?"

"Not at all." _I am not my father._ "You don't know anything about me."

"It's normal that you want to suppress it." He turned and walked around the room, like a lion confined in a cage. "That's what everyone expects you to do: repress your desires, deny your impulses, be the good guy, the hero's best friend, a secondary character in your own life. But you're not that person, Winn." Teague looked at him, unsmiling, his face turned into a stone statue. "You're not like the others."

"What others?"

He shook his head. "Forget about them, none of them turned out to be anything special. I knew it from the moment I first saw you: you're the special person I've been looking for all my life."

 _This man is totally crazy._ Desperation throbbed painfully in his chest, mixed with melancholy. "That's what your game is about? Locking me up to have me just for you? Don't you realize how sick you are?"

He denied with a shake of his head. "I'd love to have you locked up forever, but the reality is that you will eventually leave your room, but first you have to fall in love with me."

Winn's pupils became tiny, his heart pounding painfully against his ribs.

"But you could start with a bath, don't you think? I promise not to look."

* * *

 **Lena**

 **12:40 PM**

Sitting in the darkness of the Batcave, Lena came to the conclusion that she liked the Egyptian gods more than the Greek ones. In her right bracelet, the image of Isis looked like a creature out of a dream, a colorful fairy with wings instead of arms. On the other bracelet, Hera's solemn face shone, her expressionless gold eyes looking at her indifferently. She had never been religious and knew she would never be, but wondered which of them would listen if she decided to start praying. _Whoever, as long as one of them helps me out of this mess._

She looked up, watching the gleam of a small white cat's necklace beside the blackboard. Lena re-read the words written on it, the summary of all the problems in her life over the past few months.

 _ **Where is Veritas hiding?**_

 _ **How do they relate to the Amazons?**_

 _ **How many members do they have? Who are they? Where are they?**_

 _ **How much magic do they have access to? (medallion)**_

 _ **How are they related to the stolen serum?**_

 _ **Their relationship with the Luthor.**_

 _ **Why do they want to kill LL/LoT?**_

Just looking at the blackboard, her stomach contracted. Not because the six questions showed how little they knew about their enemies, but for that question of which the answer she knew. ( _Why do they want to kill LL/LoT?)_

 _('Imagine this is a bad movie. And now tell me, who is the villain?')_

 _I can't think like that._ _They are the ones who kill thousands of people a year. They are the ones who have my family. I have to..._

 _('Lena... we have to release her.')_

Lena clenched her fists until they turned white, feeling the signs of worry growing in her chest. ( _I need Kara. Hurry up, Kara_ ). To control her anger, she forced herself to stare at Mrs. Wayne's long fingers, dancing quickly on the keyboard. She had a small bandage on her right hand.

"What happened to your hand?" asked Lena.

Selina looked at her out of the corner of her eye. "The Penguin attempted to escape from prison yesterday. With Kate and Bruce investigating all the time, my nights have become much busier." The thin woman smiled briefly. "Wouldn't you rather wait upstairs? There's not much you can do here until Kate and Kara get back from Chicago."

"If I stay upstairs doing nothing, I'll go crazy," said Lena looking at the small white cat lying on the floor in front of her.

"In that case, can you bring the first aid kit?" Selina pointed to a small wooden piece of furniture a little to the left of the computer. "Just in case Kate got hurt."

Lena got up and went to the closet, taking out a first-aid kit that had to weigh at least eighteen lbs. _Damn, this is heavy._ The brunette left it at a small table by the stretchers, opening it and looking over all the gauzes, tweezers, needles, morphine, ( _wow, chips_ ), magnets, and other medical objects whose names she did not know. _Alex would know if she were here._

"How far along are they?" asked Lena, returning to her place.

Selina shook her head. "The Batplane is ten minutes away."

After ten eternal minutes of being watched by the cats, Lena heard the dull roar of the lightweight Batplane landing on the Batcave. Seconds after the engines went out, Lena saw Kara come in through the cave on her left, walking briskly. Her appearance was the same as that of four hours ago: black wig, green contact lenses, makeup that camouflaged the natural arches of her face and made her look older. Kate stepped behind Kara, taking off her blonde wig and glasses.

Kara did not look at her and continued on, entering another of the caves on her left.

"Kara?" asked Lena, frowning, feeling a pang of worry. "Where are you going? What happened?"

 _ ***BAM***_ A loud rumble came from inside the cave **. _*BAM* *BAM*_**

"Don't follow her," said Kate, stopping Lena. "They're just useless pieces of old cars."

Selina looked at her in alarm, rising from her chair. "What happened?"

"I think we already know what Veritas wants the EruditeCorp serum for." Kate sighed wearily. "In its normal function, the serum puts the user's brain through 'simulations'. The brain is monitored and the simulation creates an unreal world around the user."

"Dreams?" asked Selina.

Lena shook her head, with a bad feeling. "Science is using it to treat psychiatric disorders such as post-traumatic stress, helping people deal with their problems in a safe way. Lex used to be fascinated by the project."

"Surely." Kate pursed her lips. "Because the serum can also be used to hurt people." The redhead reached into her coat and took out some files, throwing them on the computer table.

Lena felt her heart race, picking up the folder and opening it to find the familiar organized writing of scientific reports. "No..."

"In the wrong hands and making some modifications, the serum..."

"...it can worsen the damage rather than heal it." Thousands of scenarios appeared in her mind, each one worse than the previous one. _They're playing with their heads_.

Lena left the file on the table, hurrying toward the tunnel where Kara had previously entered. The roar of violent blows guided her into the darkness, until she reached a cave dimly lit by a blue light. As Kate said, Kara was pouring out her fury and frustration into old batmobile pieces. Lena watched with concern as Kara smashed an old black hood with a single punch. _***PUMP***_

"Kara..."

 _ ***PUMP***_ The blonde did not hear her, throwing the black hood against the wall of the cave. The scream of the bats on the roof echoed on the walls. Kara jumped on another old Batimobile, shattering it with furious quick fists.

"Kara, stop!" Against her common sense, Lena approached the furious alien. "Kara!"

The Kryptonian roared like a lion, completely raising the old Batimobile and throwing it away. The squeaking noise of the crashing metal mingled with the deafening screams of the bats. Lena paused for a couple of seconds, frightened, and angry at herself for being frightened, and then forced herself to keep walking. "Kara..."

"I have to fly to Scotland," gasped the blonde. "I'll look for them all over the country with my super speed, my super hearing, my vision. Sooner or later I have to find Alex's scent, or the sound of her breathing, or whatever!" Kara grunted, running her hand nervously through her messy blond hair. "Sooner or later I'll find her heartbeat. I just have to look..."

"You can't blindly look for them, Kara," said Lena, trying to touch her.

"Yes I can!" Furious, Kara stepped back. "Yes I can! I can and I will! I will do it now! I am the most powerful creature on Earth and Alex needs me now!" Her eyes were wide. "Alex needs me... Alex..."

"Kara." Lena took her hand. "They'd find you, they'd probably catch you, and we can't find them if they catch us."

Her face cracked, clenching her hands in mortal fury. Lena closed the distance quickly and wrapped the blonde in her arms. Kara trembled as if her heart wanted to leave her chest and her blood was on fire. "They're hurting them..."

"They are the strongest people we know, Kara. We only have one chance to save them." Lena took her face in her hands. "And if they catch us... then everything will be over."

Kara pursed her lips, her eyes less furious, and sadder. "What's happened to the world, Lena? This world is horrible without Alex, it's unbearable without Alex. I'm not myself without my sister. I'm afraid I'll never get her back."

"I won't let you lose hope." Lena kissed her eyelids. "I miss them too, Kara, and I hate those who took my family when I just found them. But we will get them back." Lena caressed her cheek. "I swear, Kara, we'll do whatever it takes to get them back."

"I know." Kara touched the medallion on Lena's chest. "I just hope no one gets hurt by that."

Kara was silent, turning her gaze to a corner of the cave. Two seconds later her muscles relaxed.

"What happened?"

"Nothing, it's just a cat."

Lena kissed her cheek. "Do you think you can go back? Do you need a moment alone?"

Kara sighed, looking at the remains of the black vehicle. "Maybe later."

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **12:49 PM**

Taking Lena's hand in hers, Kara advanced through the dark cave, back to the main room of the Batcave. Halfway through, her super hearing caught the sound of two voices talking. ( _"Where are Supergirl and Luthor?" "They needed a moment alone, Bruce." "I have something to show them, and it's important.")_ Imperceptibly, Kara quickened her steps, pulling Lena's hand.

Mr. Wayne had a pair of folders in his hands, talking to his wife and his cousin when Kara and Lena got out the tunnel. When he saw them, the man separated from the women and approached the couple. "I've talked to my son Tim. He seems to have had better luck than Kate and you, Kara."

Bruce handed a folder to Kara, who knew that it was paper recently printed for its warmth. The blonde opened it immediately, feeling Lena's breath on her neck as she bent to see it as well. In the folder, Kara could see a few photographs of Cat, Carter, a small brown-haired woman whom she recognized as Genevieve Trueman, a mysterious man with a mustache dressed as a chauffeur, and a blonde woman with glasses and a ponytail.

"What is this? Your son is watching Cat?" asked Kara.

"He's watching everyone." Bruce pointed to the blonde woman. "That's how he found her."

"Who is she?" asked Lena.

Bruce arched an eyebrow. "I understand you only spent a week with her, but I was hoping you would recognize her. She calls herself Polly Troy and she is Ms Grant's new personal assistant and bodyguard."

Lena's eyes widened slightly, her breath escaping from her lips in a mixture of surprise and relief. "Grandmother."

Bruce exchanged a look with Kara. "How fast can you fly to National City?"

* * *

 **The Truth**

 **5:57 PM (Current Local Time in Scotland)**

Tess made sure that the documents on her desk were closed but visible for the last time, in a corner where Powergirl did not have too much trouble seeing them.

 **I hope you value this second chance I give you.**

"I do," replied Tess, ignoring as best she could the burning pain in her chest. "The Gap will die, you do not have to punish us again."

 **I remember that you like the women who call themselves The Bombshells on Earth-26. It would be a pity that they were erased from existence.**

Tess quietly opened the first drawer of her desk, looking for her high blood pressure pills. The woman poured herself a glass of water from the jug beside her and took two. The burning in her chest ceased, being replaced by the usual dull ache. Tess knew that the skin on her chest was scorched, a red circle that would be perfectly visible if it were not hidden by her clothes. _When you are surrounded by so many lies, it is important to remember that the Truth is only one._ Tess put her hand on her earpiece. "Count to ten and make her come in." Then she removed the earpiece and opened the second drawer of her desk, where she stored it inside a small box of lead.

Five seconds later, an escort of eight people entered with a woman whose head was in a heavy lead helmet. The red cape had disappeared at some point, leaving alone the previously white suit, now rather gray. The handcuffs around her hands glowed green, tightening her wrists. "Take off her helmet."

One of the escorts stepped forward, carefully removing the heavy lead helmet from the woman's head. Tess could not help but feel her heart race as she saw Kara Zor-L's static face before her eyes, as if halfway between a grimace of disbelief and worry. Her pupils were dilated, turning her blue eyes into black holes of unimaginable terrors. Her head swiveled in a thousand directions, finally stopping at Lutessa, who tried to be as calm as possible. "Who are you?" She closed her eyes tightly, almost in frustration. "Where am I? Release me right now. I don't want to hurt anyone."

 _Unlike Kara Zor-El, Kara Zor-L has no remorse about using her strength whenever she deems it necessary. She's not the idealist Supergirl, remember, Tess._ Lutessa did not even blink. "I'm sorry to tell you that you can't do that as long as you have these handcuffs on. They're made of a material called Kryptonite, which weakens you enough to be subdued."

Powergirl looked at her handcuffs with a suspicious expression, a silent rage behind her eyes.

"It had not been discovered in your world," Tess said.

Powergirl looked at her in silence, not letting her face betray her emotions, like a lioness preparing to defend herself. "I don't know how you know so much, but you're right: this green thing didn't exist on Krypton. I want you to take it off me."

Tess rested her arms on her desk. "Please sit."

"Take these things..." Powergirl growled softly. "...off me."

"Make her sit."

Two of the guards pushed the alien down, forcing her to sit on the wooden chair. Lutessa saw her lip quiver in anger for less than a second, staring at her as if she wanted to melt her. She was not sure she could not do it.

"No one here wants to hurt you, Miss Starr, but for that we need you to work with us." Tess returned to pour herself a glass of water, being careful not to look into her eyes, as if she were not important. "We don't know if you're in a psychological condition to control your strength. Those handcuffs are just as much for ensuring your well-being as ours."

"Let's pretend I believe you." Powergirl looked up into her eyes. "No doubt you know a lot about me, while I don't know anything about you or this place, so you can't say you're playing fair."

Tess did not take the bait. "You can call me Ms Mercer. Now that you're sitting, we can start, because we have a long conversation ahead of us." Tess rubbed her hands. "The first thing you must know is that we are Veritas, and it is our sacred duty to watch over the safety of the Multiverse."

"Multiverse?" Powergirl arched an eyebrow. "That's just a theory."

"It's very real and I can prove it quickly," said Tess coldly. "In your world, President Luthor has an invalid and mentally weak sister. Have you ever seen a picture of her?"

"What does the President's sister...?" Her eyes widened, her lips turning white. "Lutessa Luthor. You look like her, but... healthier."

"That's because I'm Lutessa Luthor, Miss Starr," replied Tess. "I am the Lutessa Lena Luthor from here, Earth-38. Your place of origin was called Earth-15."

Tess waited patiently for the information to be absorbed by the blonde's brain, whose gaze was lost on her hands on the table. When she finally looked up, there was only darkness in her eyes. "Why have you brought me here? Give me back to my Earth."

Tess took a deep breath. "We can't."

"You don't know who-"

"Your Earth no longer exists, Kara," said the brown-haired woman, using her real name. "It was destroyed more than two weeks ago. There are no survivors, only you."

The blonde woman's hard mask fell like a house of cards, her mouth opening slightly as if she wanted to let out a sob. Powergirl shook her head softly, her eyes bright with tears. Lutessa had a fleeting memory of Lena's tears, her suffering when she learned that there was nothing she could do to save anyone. Just die. That pain that seemed to be killing her inside. Powergirl's gaze was obscenely familiar.

"It's a lie," the Kryptonian stammered. "It's absurd, you're lying."

"You were there, Kara." She glanced over her shoulder to avoid her gaze. "It wasn't a nightmare, not a hallucination, you were there."

"The screams," Powergirl whispered. "No, those screams are nightmares." Her whole body began to tremble like a leaf, her gaze fixed on the desk. She no longer seemed to perceive the people around her. "Why?" A couple of tears streamed down her stoic face. "Why me again?"

Tess had the uncontrollable desire to explain why, but she did not. She was silent, waiting for Kara Zor-L to have an emotional breakdown, bursting into tears of pain and rage. _But of course, she won't._ No, according to the file, Karen Starr Grant/Kara Zor-L had never cried in public, only alone or in Ms Grant's arms. She was biologically Kara Danvers, but psychologically she was much more self-demanding, distrustful, difficult to manipulate.

Her fists were tightly closed, and Tess thanked the Kryptonite handcuffs. Karen stared at her. "Who was it?"

Tess made an effort not to look away. "It was God."

"Rao?"

"The God of all gods, Mobius."

Her fingers arched like the claws of a harpy. "And why did he do it?"

Tess felt her chest burn softly, as if someone were resting warm metal on her skin. "He did it to punish us."

Karen's lips tightened as if she tasted something disgusting.

"Our job is to keep the Multiverse safe from Mobius's enemies, Kara. And one of them escaped, killing thousands, and your whole world," said Tess, squeezing her hands to control her trembling. "We are in a war of Gods, do you understand? Your world fell because our enemy escaped."

"So you're saying I lost it all again for some damn collateral damage?" she asked, her face flushed. "Is that all my life was? Collateral damage?"

"Exactly."

The girl's natural reaction was swift. Powergirl tried to pounce on the desk, her eyes open painfully, shouting in a language that Tess supposed was Kryptonian. Two of the guards held her before her hands could touch Tess's throat, forcing her to sit back, still grunting in her native language. Karen tried to free herself from the guards' grip, trying to hit them with her head, but one of them held her jaw to keep her still. Tess gave her a few minutes to let off steam.

"That's what we are to the Gods, Kara; ants to crush when they are in a bad mood. I know it. You know it now, the gods have taken away two worlds from you. But you survived, and you can help us to avoid what happened to Earth-15 happening to the other Earths. You haven't lost everything yet."

"You're wrong. If my world is dead again..." she replied with her voice about to break. "I have nothing to fight for anymore."

"Yes, you have." Tess took a deep breath. "His power is limitless. If we stop his enemies and the balance returns to normal, he could... bring them back."

Powergirl seemed to lose all the air in her lungs, looking at her as if she had gone mad. Tess was not sure she was wrong. "What?"

"Earth-15 is gone forever." Her fists turned white. "But your family... Your friends... He can bring them back for you, Kara, he will do it if you help us and we succeed... Otherwise, we are all doomed."

"What do I have to do?" asked the Kryptonian.

Tess took a deep breath, realizing for the first time that her head hurt. "I'm going to tell you the truth. We have to kill the enemies of Mobius: Lena of Themiscyra and Kara Danvers, your doppelganger."

Powergirl's eyes widened. Tess nodded, looking at her handcuffs.

"I think you need some time to think... Take her back to her cell, please."

* * *

 **The girl who lost everything twice**

 **6:49 PM (Current Local Time in Scotland)**

Between the pushes of the people who held her with steel grip, Powergirl made her way back to her room. Unlike the previous time, she was not doing her best to hear something through the lead helmet. Kara Zor-L could only hear a distant buzz, a distant echo in the deepest darkness ( _an entire planet exploding in the distance, the terrifying darkness of infinity, then thin arms embracing her after nightmares. Adam inviting her to play. Carter's heartbeat when he was born._ )

The door to her room (prison) opened. One of the men took off her lead helmet and the other pushed her forward. Karen lost her balance, but did not stumble. Behind her she heard the door closing.

It was only then that she dropped to her knees on the floor, feeling a malaise as violent in her stomach as if her insides had rotted. ( _'My name is Catherine Grant and you're going to stay with me.' 'C'mon Kar! We're siblings, you can trust me. Carter is not going to break if you hold him.' 'Karen Starr? I'm Alexandra Danvers. Why do you want to work for D-Corp?' 'This is your new assistant, babe? Ohhh, she's soooo cute! Here, consider this a gift. It's my new autobiography, Margaret Danvers: This is me.' 'B-But, Kar I'm old enough to fly! Adam and you were younger than me and that never stopped you!'_ )

And in a second she had lost everything again.

A bitter ball of desperation clogged in her throat, as if she were drowning. _I hate the sound of crying, Catherine says that crying is useless._ The overwhelming white of the whole room turned gray. The room became bigger, smaller, bigger, smaller. Powergirl had entered a reality where the disaster lived with the confusion. Where she was only certain of one thing.

"They are gone."

And then the room stopped changing and she was screaming and screaming and everything began to shake.

* * *

 **The confused boy**

 **6:53 PM (Current Local Time in Scotland)**

Winn came out of the shower, a towel wrapped around his waist and drying his hair with another one ( _'The world corrupts us, son'._ ) The brunet avoided looking at himself in the small mirror of the bathroom, perhaps in fear of what he might discover in his reflection. ( _'It corrupts us and is the first to condemn us'_ ).

"I'm not like him," he said aloud, trying to erase Teague's twisted smile from his mind. "I'm not like him. I'm stronger. I'm good."

The muffled sound of a hysterical cry interrupted his words.

Winn came out of the bathroom, holding his towel firmly. As he thought, Teague was no longer there, only the cluttered books being evidence of his former presence. The agonizing cry was bouncing on the walls, painfully entering his ears and bristling every hair on his skin as if he were a cat. The saliva dried in his throat. Slowly, Winn approached the surface of the wall. "Karen?" He hit the wall slowly. "Karen, what's going on? Karen?"

 _'They're gone.'_

"What are you talking about? What happened?"

 _'They died.' ***PUMP***_ Winn stepped back, alarmed by the violent blow against the wall. _'They're dead.' ***PUMP!*** "They are DEAD! I didn't save them! They're GONE!'_

 _ ***PUMP PUMP PUMP PUMP PUMP PUMP***_ The blows followed quickly, one after the other against the hardness of the wall. Winn was surprised at the girl's enormous strength and rage. "Karen." She did not respond, grunts of rage were the only answer he got. "Karen, stop!" The grunts were replaced by choking moans, noisy, painful sobs. "I'm here," said Winn. The crying continued sounding like the hum of a radio. "I'm here, Karen, I'm here." He felt like an imbecile, desperately searching for something to say. "I'm sorry."

The sobs sounded lower, as if she were drowning in them. _'I should have died with them.'_

"Don't say that," said Winn in a firm but kind voice. "It's not true. Think about your family, would they have wanted you to die with them?"

 _'No,'_ murmured Karen. _'But what does it matter? They're not here to tell me that in person. Tell me, boy, what the hell does it matter if I'm alone again?' ***PUMP*** 'My adoptive siblings, my tutor, they're gone forever, unless...'_ she sobbed, calmed down a bit. _'Have you ever loved someone so much that you would be willing to do anything for them? Bad things? Even impossible things?'_

"...No," answered Winn, sitting on the floor, catching the cold of the wall against his bare skin. "I mean, I have friends and I'd do anything for them. But the truth is that I have never had any luck in love at all."

 _'You don't have family?'_

Winn bit his lip, trying to ignore the painful knot in his throat. "My father is dead," lied Winn. "My mother left me soon after. I have been alone since then, until I met my friends."

' _You sound like a good boy,'_ murmured the girl on the other side of the wall. _'Please keep talking to me. I-I don't want to think.'_

Winn rubbed his chin, feeling uncomfortable with his incipient beard. "Every time I think I've found someone, I end up disappointed. I think I've just stopped looking, I'm satisfied with having my friends."

 _'Tell me about your friends,'_ said the girl. Winn thought he heard a sigh. _'What are they like?'_

Winn smiled a little, hugging his legs. "James is my... partner in the crime. You know, we didn't get off to a good start. We both liked the same girl, but Kara rejected us both so..." Winn stopped when he heard a rumble from the other side, as if something had fallen on the other side. "Karen?"

 _'I'm sorry,'_ said the girl. _'Keep talking, please.'_

Winn looked at his thumbs. "He's going to find us, he's the most stubborn person I know. He, Alex, and Kara." Winn sighed. "We will leave here, all of us. I have faith in them."

 _'Who are Alex and... Kara?'_

Winn smiled. "They're the most united sisters you could imagine. They always take care of each other, I wish I had a brother like that." He yawned. "Well, maybe a little less overprotective. When Kara started dating Lena, Alex put hidden cameras even in her refrigerator."

 _'Lena?'_

"Um, yes." Winn shook his head. "Lena is my best friend, and she's Kara's girlfriend. She's, like, the person I always can talk to because she always understands."

 _'You care about her.'_

"She earned it." Winn smiled wistfully. "I never thought I'd miss her bad taste in books... Karen, are you still there?"

 _'Yes.'_ The girl took a long pause. _'Tell me about Lena.'_

* * *

 **The Candidate for President**

 **1:30 PM**

The candidate for President, Catherine Grant, hung up her cellphone after an exhaustive call with Snapper Carr, watching the streets move through the window of her limousine. Cat pursed her lips as the vehicle spun around on one of the many destroyed streets, where some builders worked on its repair. _There is less damage every time, good._ Donating money for repairing the streets had been a good tactic for her public image. According to Lord, Ronald Dump was more and more uneasy and nervous. _Careful, Maxine, be careful._

"Now you must turn left, Aquaman," said Cat, looking at the King out of the corner of her eye.

"Miss Grant, please call me Arthur," answered her new driver. "My disguise becomes useless if you call me Aquaman."

"Your Majesty, with all due respect, you're only wearing a fake mustache." Through the rearview mirror, Cat could see the Atlantean blushing. "I can offer you another type of disguise if your intention is to go unnoticed."

"What kind of disguise?"

"Plastic surgery? Make-up?... Dye your hair?"

"That sounds very complicated." King Arthur narrowed his eyes. "Maybe I could get a magic spell, that would be much easier and more effective. Only the people I wanted to see me could see me."

"Your Majesty, I doubt that people would be unable to notice if my limousine drove on its own."

Aquaman parked the vehicle in front of the General Hospital, in an area that was left relatively untouched by starbolts and explosions. Cat smiled even before she saw them. Cameramen, photographers and reporters were piling up near the entrance, asking questions to a teenager accompanied by a blonde woman. Cat felt the pride grow in her chest when she saw Carter, doing his best to appear confident and mature. _His eyes look directly at the cameras._ And those ones of the former Queen were watching every point around them. Hippolyta's gaze fell on the limousine window, and Cat knew, even through the dark glass, that she was looking directly into her eyes.

Arthur stepped out of the car and opened the door for her, his smile unable to hide his distrustful look at the journalists, who might be potential threats. One of them shouted _'it's Miss Grant! It's Miss Grant!'_. In less than two seconds, another small crowd of journalists surrounded them, spreading microphones, tape recorders, and cellphones.

 _'Miss Grant! What do you think...?'_

 _'Cat! Do you have statements about...?'_

 _'Are you going to move to Washington?'_

 _'Was it your idea that Carter donated blood?'_

"I'm so glad to see you all here today," said Cat, looking at the attentive Atlantean King out of the corner of her eye. "We all know the importance of helping each other to build a better society, and I encourage you to continue donating blood and resources to the victims of National City. Any help, however small, makes a difference. And in fact, donating blood was my son's decision." Smiling softly, Cat looked at Carter. "Honey, it's time to go."

Carter and 'Polly Troy' made their way through the crowd to approach the vehicle. Arthur firmly but gently pushed aside a host of cameramen who obstructed the door of the limousine, helping the three of them in. _This is worse than when I announced that I was taking a break outside the city._ The Atlantean entered the car through the driver's seat, turning the key and starting the engine.

Carter was sitting beside her, next to Hippolyta, examining the bandage on his arm. "There must be something else I can do."

Cat took his hand. "You already do more than enough supporting me, darling. You don't need to get involved in my campaign if it makes you uncomfortable, you know."

Carter rolled his eyes, shaking his head. "Actually, I do have to."

"Your intentions are noble, Prince Carter. Admirable for someone of such a young age," said her assistant with a slight smile. Carter was genuinely confused. "However, the delicacy of democracy forces us to proceed with extreme caution. Your security could be compromised if you increase your visibility."

Carter blinked a couple of times. "Um, I appreciate your concern, Polly. But I really do think that I have to. I can be very useful for my mom's public image." Carter looked at her, sitting up straight as an adult. "Since Marsdin withdrew her candidacy, everything has been reduced to Dump and you. He has a pretty bad public image with all his divorces, children, rumors... For him it's difficult to present an image of 'family man' as is normal, but you can present an image of 'responsible and caring mother' with my help. That could give you a little bit of an advantage."

"Maybe in a different America, sweetheart." Cat rubbed his shoulder. "Today society is so upset and frightened that it's willing to choose a xenophobic bully with the good manners of a garbage truck, just because they think he can protect us." Cat shook her head. "He can't."

"And you're sure that you can?" asked Carter. _He seems older and less fragile with each passing day._

Cat stroked his curls. "I'm sure we can, with the help of people like Kara, Wonder Woman, Ms Luthor... When they come back to us."

She glanced at the Amazon Queen, who watched them with a small smile and melancholic eyes. _I know that feeling of missing your children._ Cat smiled encouragingly. Hippolyta smiled back as best she could, opened her briefcase, and began taking notes for what they would need at the charity dinner that night.

Cat's smile faded as she realized that her assistant was writing in ancient Greek. _Ugh, don't any of them know how to go unnoticed? Maybe that magic spell wouldn't be so bad after all..._

* * *

 **A normal woman from Man's World**

 **2:10 PM**

Man's world had changed so much and in such a short time that Hippolyta had some difficulty adapting. It was only thanks to King Arthur that she had not gotten lost every time she had gone out of her 'apartment'. And also to the patience and generosity of the Empress Cat. Above her notes on what they would need for dinner ( _what the Tartarus is caviar?_ ), she saw Prince Carter squeeze his mother's hand, demonstrating his support, loyalty and courage.

 _('You will see, Mother, I will be the best warrior in the world! And... I will free nations, and help people! Would that make you proud?')_

 _My little sun and stars._ The former Queen gritted her teeth. _I have always been proud of you, Diana._ Every day she wondered if it would be the day they get any news of Diana. Whether that news would be good... or not.

When they reached the street of the Empress' house, Hippolyta was momentarily blinded by more glows of those artifacts called 'cameras'. _How are these people not blind yet?_ But Empress Cat was so brave that she did not seem upset by the presence of these enemies, but rather pleased at the challenge of facing them. _This woman is so unpredictable..._

"Ahh, the cameras, watching each of my movements, hungry for a mistake." Cat smiled, biting her lip slightly. "Well, everybody remember to smile and say hello. And don't answer any questions, don't forget that they are like sharks. Good thing the security team seems to be efficient enough."

The car pulled up in front of Cat's house, a large, peach-colored building, which reminded Hippolyta of the ancient mansions of Ethiopia. She was the first to get out, watching the other security guards keep everyone at a safe distance. The chief security officer, a young woman with short hair named Susan Vázquez, came up to ask her if everything had gone well. She replied 'yes', while still looking at the crowd.

Empress Cat and Carter got out of the car, walking quietly toward the door of their residence like a pair of generals entering a conquered city. _Maybe things did not really change that much._ The small woman greeted the people by waving her hands, ignoring the noisy questions and the confused exclamations. She and Susan Vazquez advanced to follow them into the house.

Inside, the Empress was talking to another security guard named Grady. Carter sneaked into the kitchen, probably to quench his appetite of a young warrior in the making.

"The house has been checked from top to bottom. Everything is in order, Ms Grant," said the guard.

"Thank you, Owen." Cat looked at Vazquez. "Susan, tell your team to keep an eye on the house. The catering team will be here in an hour, and I'll need you outside so they can work."

"Then we'll have to check them before they come in."

"I offer to taste the food to make sure it's not poisoned," joked the guard, before leaving the house next to his superior.

The former Amazon Queen heard the echo of the door closing. "Are you sure they are capable and loyal warriors?"

"Soldiers, Your Majesty," said Cat walking toward the living room. Hippolyta followed her, leaving her bag on a beautiful purple couch. "Nearly all of them are ex-soldiers, highly skilled. Susan was in Africa taming wild lions."

"I was in Africa once, almost three thousand years ago. There were many lions." She smiled, remembering when Antiope wanted to adopt one as a pet. "So there are no wild lions anymore?"

Cat sat down on the couch, checking a small mirror. "Africa is the only place that has wild lions."

"Then why did Susan Vazquez go to tame lions?"

"I met the millennial in the airport bathroom, give her some credit." Cat gently massaged her temples.

 _This world is so, so strange._

The Empress stopped rubbing her temples and rubbed her neck. "Anyway, I will have to get accustomed to remembering people's names and to the lack of privacy if what I really want is to govern this country for the next four years. Failure is not an option." She opened her eyelids, looking into her eyes. "There's too much at stake."

Hippolyta smiled slightly. "I am absolutely sure that you will be a good leader for your people. I have never met a human who is more willing to improve her country." She sighed, looking away. "Maybe if I had been more like you, my people would not have decided they were better off without me."

The Empress was opening her mouth to respond, when a noise ( _*Prum*_ ) was heard from the cupboard to the right. Before even realizing it, Hippolyta was standing in front of Empress Cat, sharpening her hearing, raising her arms to prevent a possible attack. _Enemies..._

"Hippolyta, what...?"

"Shh," whispered the taller woman. "There's someone in that wardrobe. Call your guards."

 _I will not let anyone hurt the people I care about again._ Hippolyta moved silently toward the cupboard, removing a medium-curved dagger from her belt. _I will get him._ She brushed the door handle with her fingers, listening to Cat's stealthy steps further away. _I will interrogate him._

She jerked the door open. "Surrender!"

She had been right. Inside the dark closet, two women raised their hands, startled. Hippolyta was about to knock down the nearest one when she recognized her face. "Lena?"

"Hello Grandma," her granddaughter answered, smiling slightly, still staring at the dagger. "I'm sorry we had to hide, but Kara and I couldn't allow anyone to see us. We were about to come out of the closet..."

"Your Majesty..." Kara advanced a little. "It's us. You don't need to keep aiming at Lena with that dagger."

"Oh, Lena..." Hippolyta lowered the dagger, drawing her granddaughter into her arms to hug her tightly, smelling the scent of fresh fruit that her hair had always had. "You are safe. You are here." She pulled away enough to caress her face. "It's you." She kissed her forehead. "I was so afraid of losing you again."

"You're the one who is publicly dead." Lena hugged her harder.

"But you found me." The former Queen stroked her black hair. "You always find us, my sun and stars."

Cat's eyes locked on Kara. "Wow, you finally showed up."

"Cat, I-I'm sorry, I c-could not help it. I-"

"Kara," Cat interrupted the girl. "You're alright?"

"Yes," she answered too quickly, in a tone that did not sound very convincing. "I read what you wrote in the newspaper, that reminded me of who I am, and I thank you, Cat. But as we speak, they could be hurting our family. Hippolyta..." Kara looked at the former Queen. "Do you know where Veritas has the others? Is there anything you can tell me to find them?"

"They only managed to take Artemis, Kara," she answered, looking into her eyes. She looks so stressed and tense. "My daughter, your sister and her beloved fell down Doom's Doorway. They did not leave the island."

The blonde girl blinked a couple of times. "And what does that mean?"

"The Underworld," said Lena, her eyes wide and her skin very pale. "They are in the Underworld."

* * *

 **Kate Kane**

 **2:25 PM**

Kate allowed herself to open her lips slightly in surprise, her throat dry and her hands frozen on the keyboard, as if the Batcave had suddenly been transformed into a freezer. _Maggie._ She abruptly started typing on the computer, her teeth clenched tightly. _Doom's Doorway, there has to be some way out of there. If they're in the Underworld, maybe Raven might be useful._ Her reaction did not go unnoticed for Bruce, who looked at her with a cold, questioning look.

"Diana, Alex Danvers and... Maggie," Kate told her cousin. "They didn't leave the island, they fell down Doom's Doorway."

Bruce sighed. "What a relief."

"Excuse me, did you listen?"

"That means they're alive, Kate." Batman got to his feet. "You don't know Diana. There were only two possible answers for her disappearance: either she was dead or on another existential plane. Nothing in this world would be able to hold her against her will." He picked up some files. "And I don't want to imagine how powerful our enemy is if they can kill Wonder Woman."

Kate frowned. "They still have trapped another Amazon, two Martians and an expert hacker. Don't underestimate them, Bruce."

"I never do," he growled, quickly typing on his cellphone. "I have to go. Maybe Dick has found a way to read Lillian Luthor's book. And Kate..." He looked at her. "Not only pay attention to Queen Hippolyta's voice, but also to Luthor and Supergirl's."

"You distrust them?"

"No," replied Bruce walking toward the exit. "I'm just sure they're hiding something from us."

Kate sighed, watching as a little black cat jumped toward the chair where her cousin had previously been sitting. _Unfortunately, me too._

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **2:26 PM**

Kara felt Cat's tiny hand on her shoulder, bringing her back to reality. Her former boss seemed totally calm, even though Kara could hear her heart beating slightly faster. "Let's go upstairs to talk. Carter's in the kitchen, and I don't want him getting into any of this."

As they climbed the stairs, Kara used her super senses to locate Carter in the kitchen, eating a sandwich while looking at his cellphone with his headphones on. Kara watched the corners of his lips rise into a smile as he watched the screen of his cellphone. Her heartbeat quickened slightly as she checked the adolescent's well-being in person. She could not have borne the blame if something had happened to Carter.

Being back in Cat's house made her feel nostalgic for simpler years, when her only concern was to protect her secret identity and keep the city safe from her Aunt Astra. Cat led them to the third floor, turning right and entering her study.

It felt good to be there again, in a familiar place with people she trusted. She, Lena and Hippolyta sat down in a large black armchair in front of the desk, and Cat in the purple one by the window. The sun barely entered through the curtains, reflecting shimmering orange gleams in her former mentor's hair. "Where have you been?"

"The Fortress," answered Kara, rubbing her hands together. "It has a global genetic localization satellite system, but I couldn't find anyone."

"They are not in our world, Kara," said the Queen softly, rubbing Lena's hand. "Doom's Doorway leads to Hades's domains."

"How do we get them out of there?" asked Kara, having a bad feeling at seeing the Queen's eyes.

"We can not get them out."

Kara felt a heat ball in her stomach. "I can fly to Themiscyra right now," she said, trying to sound determined. "Get in that Doom's Doorway and-"

"Look for them in the Underworld as if it were a park?" Cat raised her eyebrow. "Ridiculous."

"But..."

"I agree with Cat," said Lena, for a moment looking surprised by her own words. "You can't go to the Underworld in our current situation."

"I can bring them back."

"Before or after dealing with the Amazon Army?"

"I can go through them without any problem, Lena." _Just not before throwing Alkyone into space._ "Now I know where they are. I can go get them."

"And while you are not here, what about the world?" Cat crossed her legs. "I know it's not easy and I don't pretend to understand what you're going through, Kara. However, Lena and Hippolyta also miss Diana and are able to see it from a logical point of view. Your sister would tell you that if she were here."

Kara felt the embarrassment growing in her chest, pressing her lips and looking away. "You're right, again." _Alex would be ashamed of my weakness._ "I'm sorry..."

Cat took her hand, tightening her knuckles. Kara felt better for a second, allowing her lungs to release tension. _Focus, Kara._ Cat rubbed her arm to comfort her. "Don't apologize."

Hippolyta sighed. "Actually, it is almost fortunate that they fell down Doom's Doorway, otherwise my sis- the Amazons would undoubtedly have executed them." Hippolyta shook her head. "Diana was hurt, I do not think she could have defended herself, and she knows the Underworld very well." Hippolyta looked at Lena. "She will lead them out, I am sure."

Lena went pale. "How hurt?"

"...She was stabbed." Hippolyta looked away. "Sorry, dear, I could not save her."

"And my mom?" whispered the brunette. "You said they took her. What happened?"

"Lena, it is not necessary-..."

"Tell me," she said seriously. "I need to know it."

The Queen seemed suddenly very, very tired. "They stuck an arrow in her chest." Lena's mouth parted. "They took her sometime before sunset. Before I escaped, Io said that Alkyone's friends were not planning to kill her, but-" she sighed. "... destroy her."

Kara heard Lena's jaw tighten so tightly that her teeth creaked inside her mouth. "Lutessa."

"With that name it can only be a villain." Cat put her fingertips together. "Who's Lutessa?"

"Veritas' Leader," she said, with anger in her voice. "She put the bombs in the city. She's Lillian's daughter—the real one, I mean."

Kara saw Cat become slightly irritated. "Great, then we're dealing with terrorists led by a Luthor. I have seen worse scenarios." She rubbed her hands. "Do you know what they want?"

"We don't know," said Lena quickly. "We think they are a kind of ancient occult cult. The little we know is that they want me dead, and that they are behind the conspiracy in Themyscira."

"Religious terrorists led by a Luthor, now this is more interesting." Cat got up from the chair, walking to her desk. She opened a drawer and pulled out a bottle of whiskey and a glass. Lena bit her lip, averting her gaze as Cat poured herself a drink. "Tell me Kara, where is this national threat hiding?"

"We believe that they have a base in Edinburgh, the place where Lutessa lived under the name of Tess Mercer. But the reality is that they're scattered around the world. One of their members, Jason Teague, is a serial killer who attacks brunet men." Her throat burned at the thought of Winn. "We both, and the people we're staying with, are investigating them."

"Are they reliable? Are you safe with them? Maybe you would be safer with us. I have the means to really hide you, no ponytails and glasses." She spoke sarcastically, even though Kara could hear the worry in her blood. "We're still journalists, Kara. Together we could beat them."

To Kara's surprise, Lena reached out and took Cat's hand, squeezing it gently. "Thank you for everything you've done, Ms Grant. But we're with people who have a lot of experience in catching criminals."

"Are you in the Army?"

"Something like that." Kara leaned forward. "I'd tell you if I could, Cat, but-"

"Fine," said Cat slightly annoyed. "And speaking of the Army, Baby Lane is back in town. Maybe she can help."

"I talked to Lucy." Kara avoided thinking about James at all costs. "She's also dealing with the problems left by the explosion. They don't have new information."

"Have you asked her directly?"

"Um..." _I can't allow Lucy to be in danger._ "No."

"Kara, did you hack the army?"

"Of course not." _Kate did it._ "I didn't."

Cat rubbed her temples. "You know what? It doesn't matter, I'm not president yet." Cat stood abruptly. "I'm afraid you must leave before the catering team arrives. This conversation must remain a complete secret. Dump would throw a party with the headlines, _'Is Grant planning to deliver our country to alien invaders?'_."

Kara stood, taking Lena's hand.

Her girlfriend smiled wryly. "I think I'd vote for you, Ms Grant."

"Please, Ms Luthor, don't do that. It would be rather ridiculous for you to be murdered, by going to vote."

"By the way..." said Hippolyta for the first time in several minutes. "How did you get in without anyone seeing you?"

Kara rubbed her hands together. "One of my powers is to fly faster than the human eye can perceive."

"Not very recommended for humans," Lena sighed.

Kara went to Cat's window, letting her senses spread around her. Thousands of sounds, smells, and colors flooded her brain with information. _Lena's heartbeat. Cat's perfume. Hippolyta's violet eyes._ Kara took a deep breath. _No one is paying attention to this window, they won't see us leave._ "We can leave now, Lena."

Hippolyta stepped forward to embrace her granddaughter with all her might. "Promise me you will stay safe. We can not lose you now that we have found you."

"I promise." Kara could not tell whether her girlfriend was lying or not. Lena smiled at her grandmother, kissing her on the cheek. "I still don't know how, but I'll find Lutessa. We'll stop all this madness."

"Lena." Hippolyta took her face in her hands. "Maybe the time will come in a near future where you have to make a decision. I want you to know that we do not always have the option to do good, sometimes we have to choose to do the least bad thing."

Lena looked at her with bright eyes, nodding and moving toward Kara, to surround her with her arms as if they were going to waltz. Kara looked at Cat for the last time, wishing with all her might that she had not become the target of thousands of evil people. "Cat, please take good care of yourself."

"That is my job." Hippolyta shrugged, smiling a little.

Kara watched them for a couple of seconds before nodding, holding Lena tightly, and jumping out the window, so quickly that the colors blurred for a second and Lena's breath got caught in her throat.

* * *

 **Lena**

 **2:57 PM**

Almost four seconds later, Lena's brain stopped shaking inside her head and she knew they had stopped. The brunette opened her eyes, finding herself floating in the middle of the field, many feet away from the ground. The wind threw cold blows at her back, entangling her surely already disastrous hair. Kara's solemn face was inches from hers, so inhumanly quiet that she could only be hiding how frustrated she was. "Are you okay?"

Lena avoided looking into her eyes, staring at the distant ground, feeling the familiar fear of being at great heights. Unlike other times, the fear grew peacefully, without Lena trying to stop it. She needed to feel it.

"Lena, please, talk to me."

Unable to know if she could restrain herself if she looked Kara in the eye, Lena only shook her head slowly, her fear becoming an evil parasite that fed on her pain. ( _'They stuck an arrow in her chest' 'They are in the Underworld'_ ) . "I can't lose them," whispered Lena. "I just found them."

Kara closed the distance, wrapping her in her arms and stroking her back. "I won't let you lose them."

 _Because of me, everyone is in danger._ Lena did not stop looking down, wondering if Kara would be fast enough to catch her if she let go and let herself fall. _How many lives is mine worth?_ A sudden surge of rage filled her, as she felt a slight warmth emanate from the medallion on her chest. _No. I won't let them turn me into a coward like them. Maybe I'm not a good Amazon, but I'm still a Luthor. And the Luthors know how to win a war._

"You think we're the good guys in this story, Kara?"

Her girlfriend stroked her head. "Everyone is the hero of their own story, Potsticker."

Lena took Kara's hand, placing it on her medallion. Kara looked at it, then looked at her with mute understanding.

 _I don't need to be a hero, I need to be a warrior. Because this is a war and in war there is no good and bad. Only winners and dead._

* * *

 **Kate Kane**

 **3:05 PM**

Kate stared in disbelief as her cousin removed his Batman cowl, leaving a book on the table of the Batcave. Kate stared at it incredulously, taking it in her hands and examining it closely. It looked new. There was no way it was the same book. "Did Dick learn to do magic?" asked Kate, opening it, finding many tiny Greek letters.

"It would take a long time." Bruce sat beside her, typing on the computer. "Instead, he simply found a magician."

Kate felt a sudden aversion to the object in her hands. "A magician?"

"A very powerful magician," Batman replied without looking at her. "It seems that the book had some kind of protection against strangers. Dick has a contact that agreed to restore it."

"We should investigate him."

"It's been done. Giovanni Zatara, Lord Sentinel of Magic of New York. His daughter Zatanna has a soft spot for Dick. Giovanni had a couple of problems with demons a few years ago, but he's cleaner than most of our occasional allies." Bruce looked at her, rising from his chair. "Now we can use the computer to translate it. Page 159 has priority."

Kate searched the page, surprised to find that it was handwritten with elegant, long letters, like a doctor's. _This is Luthor's writing_. Kate moved to the right of the computer, to a considerably large scanner. The redhead wondered for a moment if this was not what Lena Luthor was hiding, or if it was totally new information. "Computer, scan the page and tell me what it says."

 _ ***Scanning... Η πόρτα του χάους***_

"Translate it into English."

 _ ***The Chaos Door*** _ said the robotic voice of the computer.

Bruce clasped his hands under his chin, looking pensive. "Read the whole page."

 _ ***It was not easy, but I managed to get hold of a gap and keep it safe, in secret from the others. I do not think anyone ever knows what I sacrificed to achieve it. According to my calculations, everything will go well while Diana remains ignorant. None of the ancient texts tell me exactly what I must do, they only offer me confused prophecies and inconsistent dreams. I know what I must do, but not how I must do it. Somewhere in this huge world of which so many people ignore, so much is the Chaos Door and I must find it. I think that...***_

A red light on another of the computers caught her eye. Supergirl and Lena Luthor were coming at full speed. "They're approaching."

"Stop." Bruce got up abruptly from his chair, talking to the computer. "Save the file." He took the book in his hands, trotting quickly toward the exit. "Don't tell them about the book yet, Kate, and try to keep yourself calm. The Kryptonians know if you lie, from your heartbeat."

 _What the hell?_ Kate followed her cousin. "Bruce, you can't hide this from them."

"I won't hide it, I just won't tell them yet. I must first investigate it correctly."

"Bruce!" _***Pump***_ Her cousin slammed the door. "Now I remember why I hate working with you."

Batwoman advanced moodily to the computer, removing Lillian Luthor's words from the screen. _Everyone is keeping secrets._ Kate could not help but feel frustrated that her cousin might be right. _They know more than we have been told._ _What are you hiding, Kara and Lena? What are you not telling us? Who do you want to protect? Who are you really?_

Kate heard the sound of the footsteps of both women advancing through the entrance tunnel, approaching from the darkness. _How has all this happened? Maggie, who are your friends really?_ Kara and Lena emerged from the tunnel, their faces hardened into stone. For a moment Kate could see the similarities between Luthor's hard face and Diana of Themiscyra's famous solemn face. And Kate wondered, for less than a second, just how powerful Lena could be.

"Maggie, Alex and Diana," said Kara, running a hand through her blonde hair. "They fell down Doom's Doorway. Um, did you hear the whole conversation through the earphones?"

"And I made several conclusions about it," said Kate, trying to stay calm. "No one mentioned Lillian Luthor at any time."

Lena nodded slowly. "Hippolyta thinks she's dead."

"And what do you think will happen when she knows she is not?"

"I'll tell her," Lena sighed. "In better circumstances, when this is all over, or at least when things get better."

 _I don't see how this can end when they've exposed Supergirl._ Kate sighed, looking at the Kryptonian. "Kara, I have to tell you something."

The blonde looked at her. _Supergirl needs to recover some hope._

"It's true that we can't go looking for them in the Underworld, but I think we can communicate with them."

"What?" In Kara's eyes, a small light shone. "How?"

"I have an... occasional ally." Batwoman pursed her lips. "She's a sorceress who lives in Blüdhaven. She used to practice spells to talk to the dead before."

"Are these things real?" asked Lena, before shaking her head. "Forget it. Can she communicate with Diana, Alex, and Maggie?"

"I suggest we go find out," said Supergirl, folding her arms. "What's her name, Kate?"

"Raven Roth, Princess of Hell and Daughter of Trigon the Terrible, second Lord of Hell."

Lena sighed wearily. "Hell."

"Literally." Kate took the keys to the Batplane from the table. "We had better go immediately. We have no time to lose."

* * *

 _I can feel myself GIVING in..._

 _Damn my WEAKNESS..._

 _I'm so sleepy_

 _And there's another THING that is taking my PLACE_

 _Princess, WaTch OuT. WATCH OUT_

 _Lena_

 _I love you_

 _I'm sorry_

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **?:?**

The sand around Maggie glowed like stardust, giving her the feeling of walking on rain clouds. However, she also felt that the landscape out of an abstract dream was the most frightening thing she had ever seen in her life. Not because there were monsters threatening their lives, but because of the infinite and unknown of the darkness around them. A fear from the depths of her basic instinct, as old as maddening. _The fear of the unknown is in every human being, or something like that Aunt Minerva used to say._

As Alex could not see Alura, her girlfriend was advancing, taking her by the hand, as if it were a romantic walk in the most macabre place in the world. Diana walked a little further, her face indifferent, as if she were miles away. She had been so quiet that Maggie was beginning to worry.

"What's Alura doing?" whispered Alex, bringing her head closer.

Maggie stared at the ghost, moving forward so silently as if she were sliding. _She left no footprints in the sand._ "Nothing, she just moves along. She's not even making sure we're following her."

"Maybe she doesn't need to see us."

"My detective instinct doesn't work very well in the Underworld, sweetie. I don't even know if her eyes can see like a person's, or she can only feel us."

"I have to talk to her." Alex frowned. "It's important to Kara."

 _Why the hell is Kara's mother in the human underworld?_ Maggie tilted her head, remembering that James had told her that each world had its own Underworld. _What are you doing here, Alura?_

"Try to talk to her," whispered Alex. "It doesn't have to be about anything in particular, just try to get her to talk to you."

Maggie bit her lip, walking faster and pulling Alex's hand to shorten the distance between them and the ghost. "Alura, why does the sand shine? What is it made of?"

 _"I'm sure your friend can answer that question,"_ the ghost replied dryly.

Alex looked at her expectantly, but Maggie only shook her head in silence. Her girlfriend frowned in frustration. "Why don't you want to talk to me?"

 _"Tell your friend I have nothing to talk to her about."_

Before Maggie could open her mouth, Alex spoke again.

"Aren't you interested in knowing about Kara? You sent your thirteen-year-old daughter to another planet, and you don't want to know if she is doing okay?"

Alura still did not answer, though Alex had no way of knowing.

"Damn it, what's wrong with you? Kara always said that you were a good mother."

 _"I'm not Kara's mother,"_ answered Alura quietly. _'I am only her ghost.'_ Her voice did not convey any emotion. _'You would not understand.'_

Maggie passed those words on to Alex, who looked helplessly at the space in front of her. "And what's keeping you here?"

 _"My duty is not to answer your questions, only to take you to the exit. The hardships of the dead are no business of the living."_

 _This is not Alura,_ Maggie thought after whispering her words to Alex. _This is a ghost, an echo of what was once Kara's mother. This is only slightly better than the hologram._ Maggie sighed, thinking of her girlfriend's sister and her face when she realized the fate of her mother's soul. She wondered what her reaction would be, if that would make things worse than they already were. _I wonder where Kara and Lena are._ _If National City was attacked and they're still alive, where would they go? Metropolis?_

"Gods," said Diana quietly.

Alex looked up at her. "What?"

"The sand under our feet." Diana pulled a little lock of dirty hair from her forehead. "It's what remains of the bodies of ancient Gods, older than time, so old that their names were erased from the memory of men."

"But the gods are immortal," said Maggie, releasing Alex's hand.

"That's the scariest thing." Diana sighed. "My mother used to say that they were used by the Great Monster to attack Lena in the three-million-year war, but She killed as many as she could before she was defeated." Diana smiled wistfully. "My daughter has a warrior's name." Her smile faded. "I miss her."

Maggie took her friend's hand, squeezing it lightly. "We'll find them."

Diana looked at her with a sad smile. "And then what?"

Alex smiled furiously. "Then we kill all the Amazons." Her smile trembled a bit. "If you don't have something against it, of course."

Diana did not look at her. "No one could stop you from doing what you want." Her blue eyes lost their shine. "All I care about is finding my family."

Alex shrugged, putting a hand on the hilt of her sword. "I'll take it as a no."

Maggie bit the inside of her cheek, still watching the figure of the ghost move on the sand, as quietly as no living being would. _What are you hiding?_ Maggie's curiosity stung in her gut. _What is a Kryptonian ghost doing here, Alura?_ Maggie looked up at the infinite, that terrifyingly creeping landscape that no other simple mortal had ever seen. _What ties you to the Earth?_


	37. Requiem

**Diana of Nowhere**

 **?:?**

It had been ten minutes of silence when Alura stopped suddenly, so quietly that Diana took a few seconds to realize that she was not moving. The ghost was standing in the sand, motionless like an indifferent statue. Diana and Maggie exchanged a look. Alex looked at them in confusion. "Why do we stop?"

Diana pursed her lips. "Alura has stopped moving." The brunette advanced towards the ghost. "Alura, why did you stop?"

 _'Something is going on,'_ said the ghost without turning to her. _'The dead are singing.'_

"I don't hear anything," said Maggie, turning to her girlfriend. "She says the dead are singing."

"What does that mean?" asked Alex, looking at Diana, given her inability to look at Alura.

"It means something is disturbing them," answered Diana with a frown. "I can't hear anything either... Alura, why...?"

 _'Open your minds,_ ' interrupted the ghost, _'and you will hear.'_

Maggie repeated the message to Alex, who pressed her lips together in a thin line. The three of them were silent, looking at each other and trying to hear something through the infinite desert. Diana could not hear anything that resembled a song, but she was surprised to see small clouds of sand moving around her. _The air is still, the sand shouldn't move._ Alex looked like a cat about to jump at the slightest sign of danger. Maggie folded her arms, staring at the sand.

Alex grunted. "I hear nothing."

Diana nodded. "Whatever is disturbing the dead, I can't hear it either. Do you hear anything, Maggie?" Diana asked the smaller woman, but the detective did not respond. "Maggie?"

Maggie's hand shook slightly, her gaze lost on the moving shapes on the sand. Alex stiffened, shaking her shoulder slightly. "Maggie, are you okay? Babe?"

She murmured something.

"Maggie..."

"I can hear them." Her hands went up to her head, nervously scratching her scalp. "It's awful. It hurts!"

"Maggie." Alex took her face in her hands, trying to look into her eyes. "Maggie, calm down. Alura, what's going on!?"

 _'She has the gift of sight,'_ replied the phantom staring into the infinite. _'Therefore, she will see.'_

Diana watched in horror as Maggie collapsed in Alex's arms, trembling as if the cold had flooded her body. "Maggie!" they both shouted into the void of infinity. Maggie dropped to her knees, looking at the sand that kept moving faster and faster. Diana tried to touch her, but none of her words or actions pulled a reaction out of her friend.

"Maggie, please, talk to me! Maggie!"

"K-K-."

Diana held her so she would stop shaking. "I think she's trying to say something."

"K-Kara." Her eyes gazing at the infinite blackness on the heights. "Stop! Kara, NO, stop!"

* * *

 _The blonde woman, that thing imitating Kara, gripped her neck with deadly force, depriving her of the air she needed so much to survive. Maggie only saw sapphire eyes before being thrown into the hole. Unlike the previous time, unbearable light flooded all around her as she fell, a heat as if she were burning deep in hell and could do nothing to get out. Two dark figures appeared before her eyes, moving around her like nauseous crows. Maggie recognized the figure of the two bats, fighting to the death. But this time they were talking. And their voices were infernal cacophonies, hundreds of voices speaking as one._ _ **The gAp mUst DIe.**_ _Maggie screamed, but she could not hear her own voice breaking, because the divine voices of the bats flooded her brain as if it were to explode._ _ **tHE GaP MuST diE. MUsT DIE. MuST DIE bEfORE REachINg The WatCHER.**_

 _ **She**_

 _ **must**_

 _ **die**_

 _ **must**_

 _ **die**_

 _ **d**_

 _ **i**_

 _ **e**_

 _ **There will be none left.**_

 _MAGGIE!_

* * *

 **Just an immortal Detective (with the gift of sight)**

 **?:?**

She opened her mouth, her lungs eager to be filled with that strange, lifeless air, like a castaway who had almost succumbed to the water. Maggie's eyes met the blackness of infinity, terrifying by the mysteries it hid. _What is this hard thing under my head?_ Maggie stirred a little, trying to find out where she was. Immediately, brown eyes on a worried face entered her field of vision. "Maggie, can you hear me?"

She blinked a couple of times. "Al..."

"Shhh." Her girlfriend put her index finger on her lips, calming her. Maggie noticed that she had her head in Alex's lap, next to a pretty pale Diana. "Don't force yourself, you gave us a good scare."

"They don't want to leave me alone, Alex."

"Who?"

"The Gods," Diana murmured, her eyes worried. "It was no accident what you saw on the River Styx, Maggie. I believe that immortality has given you the gift of clairvoyance."

"You can't be sure," Alex said in a hoarse voice. "Has it happened before?"

Diana nodded in silence. "Menalippe."

Alex rubbed her face, closing her eyes in frustration. "And Menalippe went totally crazy." Alex helped Maggie to sit up, holding her in her arms like a little girl. "Maggie, sweetie, can you tell me what you saw? What did you hear? You mentioned Kara's name."

She bit her lip, squeezing her hand. "It looked like Kara, but it wasn't Kara. It was a... thing." She felt Diana pressing her other hand. "She pushed me into a big hole. As I fell, horrible voices began to scream _'The Gap must die'_."

"Lena," said Diana, opening her eyes slightly. "We have to get out of here as soon as possible."

"But Hades said that the gods can't get involved..."

"And they can't, but I know from experience that they always find a way to cause problems, Maggie," replied Wonder Woman, taking a couple of steps forward to approach Alura, as still as a statue. "Alura, we have to keep moving foward. We don't know how much time we have left."

 _'We can't.'_

Maggie saw the brunette turn her hand into a fist. "The dead have ceased singing."

 _'You don't know that, Amazon,'_ replied Alura coldly. _'The dead sing when an intruder has entered their domains. I can feel it.'_ Alura turned, allowing Maggie to see the ghost's face, hard and indifferent. _'Someone is near.'_

Alex tugged on her sleeve. "What's going on?"

"Alura has said that someone is near, we can't move forward."

Alex and Diana exchanged an almost sad look, before her girlfriend drew her sword.

* * *

 _When will all this end?_

 _It hurts too much_

 _I don't want to feel anything_

* * *

 **Bruce Wayne**

 **8:50 PM**

The computer in his office looked old on purpose. If someone entered the password of more than twenty digits, that Bruce changed every two days, that old thing running Windows XP would become one of the fastest and most intelligent computers in the world. Bruce had been there for the last four hours, his eyes reading non-stop and his brain processing all the new information.

The book escaped any order, genre, and concordance. It mentioned places that did not exist, impossible historical facts, legends, illogical numbers. _This undoubtedly follows some kind of code._ That was the most logical. If Veritas was really as dangerous as it appeared to be, they would not be foolish enough to put all their secrets in a book that could fall into enemy hands. _I'll decipher the code._ Bruce hoped he could find some information about the magic medallion. Some clue to track down its members. Why the hell would they want to kill Luthor? ( _if she told the truth and they want to kill her_ ) But the book was almost a maze. _The key is Lillian Luthor._

Bruce returned to the fragment written by Lena Luthor's real mother, trying to draw some conclusions. _***I managed to get hold of a gap and keep it safe, in secret from the others.* *everything will go well while Diana remains ignorant.***_ _What is a gap, Lillian? What did you steal from Diana?_

"Of course." Bruce rubbed his face. "The gap has to be related to Lena Luthor."

 _' Did you say something, dear?'_ asked Selina through the communicator. _' I can't hear you properly, if you growl instead of talking.'_

"I'm looking for what Luthor's hiding," replied Bruce to Catwoman. "This book mentions the word Gap several times. I think that's what they're hiding from us."

 _'Do you have any idea why?'_

"To protect someone." Bruce was still reading speedily page after page. "And I think I know who."

On the communicator, Bruce heard faint fighting sounds _. 'Sorry, the Penguin's Band is rather inopportune. What do you think?'_

"I think Lena Luthor is probably trying to protect her mother."

 _'Greek Snow White or Grumpy Rapunzel?'_

"Lillian Luthor."

Selina was silent for a few seconds. _' Are you sure?'_

"It's one of the hypotheses I have." Bruce came to a page where he found a great picture of a castle. _What is this?_ " One of the hypotheses that I consider more possible."

 _'So you think the girl is evil and has been faking for years? Lying to a Kryptonian? That sounds paranoid even for you, dear."_

"I didn't say it was most likely, just possible." _This castle must be about the size of a fortress._ "It would explain why they haven't told us the truth."

 _'Now you're being ridiculous, Bruce.'_

"Think about it for a moment," said Bruce rubbing his forehead, seeing in his mind with perfect clarity the incredulous look on his wife. "All we knew about Lillian Luthor was fake, which means she's been lying for years without anyone noticing it. Lena Luthor is a smart woman, I have no doubt she'd be able to lie to anyone. If she were completely clean, she wouldn't be trying to fool us."

 _'You don't know that, Bruce. The girl-'_

"You still think of her as an innocent girl, Selina." Bruce took the book in his hands, reading Lillian's words for the thousandth time. _Gap. Why did you need a Gap? Does Lena have any secret power related to this Gap?_ _What is this Chaos Door?_ "You forget that she's Alexander Luthor's sister and one of the twenty most powerful people in the world."

 _'It's not like you to judge a person for their family.'_

"I judge her for herself. I have investigated L-Corp twenty-two times these past three years, making sure she didn't follow in her brother's footsteps."

 _' And she has not.'_

"No." Bruce released the book, returning to the computer. "Because she has followed Lillian's, lying and manipulating, or at least trying to, to get something. Hundreds of people have died and more could die, and yet Lena Luthor refuses to be completely honest with us. What is worse, Selina, no matter how intelligent and suspicious she is, her behavior isn't normal, not in someone who wants to find her family at any cost." Bruce rubbed his forehead in frustration. "I've tried to find something of Diana in her, even something of... Diana's... wife, no matter how unprofessional she was, but all I see is Lillian." He rubbed his hands together. "Our children are like us, even if they don't have our blood, and so is Luthor."

 _'...'_

"Catwoman, are you there?"

 _'...'_

"Selina..."

 _'I'm here, sorry, I almost slipped on the roof of the church. We're not getting any younger,'_ replied his wife, her voice slightly hoarse. _'You know what I think? That this circus has gone too far. Why aren't you honest with the girl and ask her once and for all what she's hiding?'_

"Because she could lie."

 _'If she knows you don't trust her, she'll never make a mistake. My cats are already tired of following her everywhere. And if she lied, you'd know.'_

"Or maybe she would escape with Supergirl's help, and it's not very recommendable to frustrate a Kryptonian."

 _' Now you distrust Supergirl? I hope you're not around Helena.'_

Bruce rolled his eyes. "I don't distrust Supergirl. She's much stronger than Clark, much harder to break. But whe all have a limit, and I'm afraid Miss Danvers will reach hers if she doesn't find her sister."

 _'In that you're mistaken,'_ said Selina quietly. _'You're comparing Kara to her cousin. Clark is afraid that his own family could be in danger and that's why he hasn't been involved. Superman is scared. Kara also is, but she's strong enough to face it,' _ replied Selina. _'I don't know if we can trust Lena, but we can trust Kara. And that's why we should give Lena a chance. And maybe she'll give us a chance.'_

Bruce sighed, looking away from the screen of his computer. "I can't trust her."

 _'You're being stubborn.'_

"I'll talk to them tonight." Bruce got to his feet. "I'll show them the book and I'll ask them one last time if there's anything they can tell me about this Gap. And if they lie to me, I'll assume they're hiding something dangerous enough to risk their families."

 _ ***Tock Tock Tock***_

Helena entered through the door, wearing her purple pajamas and her Supergirl cape. She had two cats in her arms and one more at her feet. Her daughter looked at him with tired eyes. "Daddy, I'm sleepy. Can you read me a story before bed?"

 _' Duty calls, Batman,' _said Selina playfully in the earpiece.

Bruce sighed and turned off the computer, careful to put the book in the secret drawer of his desk. "What would you like to hear today, Kitty?"

"I want a Supergirl story!"

"Again?" Bruce took her little hand and got out of his office. "Wouldn't you like to hear a tale of someone else? Maybe, Batman?"

"Um... I like Artemis, could you-?"

"I'll read you a Supergirl story."

* * *

 **The half-demon Woman**

 **9:08 PM**

Rachel Roth pulled the hood up over her head, moving through the hallway of the second floor of her building, heading home. She was having a hard time trying to control the bubbling emotions inside her. _The last thing I want is for something to explode by accident._ She sighed, murmuring her mantra in a low voice. _No trace of Eliza Danvers_. The sorceress shook her head. _At this rate, Starfire will never recover._ She walked past one of the hallway mirrors, glancing at her appearance. The roots of her hair were violet again, she would soon have to repaint it black. _Maybe I'd just do a spell, it'd be much easier,_ thought Raven grumpily, opening the door of her apartment.

Batwoman was sitting on her couch, looking at her family photo album.

"Good evening, Raven," said Batwoman without looking up. "You were a cute baby, but in this red dress you look like a cherry."

 _ ***Bam***_ Her lamp exploded a few inches away.

"Kane..." _Calm down, Raven, calm down_. The woman stepped forward, taking the album from the masked's hands. "I hope you have a good reason to enter my house, poke into my things, and hope that I don't send you to the fifth circle of hell."

"I have a very good reason indeed," said Batwoman, standing up. "But first I need you to say the Unbreakable Vow. I need to be completely sure that what I'm going to tell you won't get out of these walls, it's a life-or-death situation."

"With you, all is of life or death. If you want me to perform the Unbreakable Vow, you'll have to tell me what this is all about," replied Raven, raising an eyebrow.

"I can only tell you that it's about saving innocent people from religious fanatics, as I saved your mother when Trigon's sect took her away, remember?"

Raven did not even blink. "Does this endanger my team?"

"I really doubt it."

"Fine, but after this I won't owe you anything." Raven reached out, taking Batwoman's hand, allowing an aura of dark magic to wrap their hands together. "Don't get smart, if you break an Unbreakable Vow we could die."

"I know," grunted the woman. "Do you swear that you will keep in secret everything that happens in this room tonight?"

"I swear. Do you swear you'll buy me a new lamp?"

She could have sworn that Kane rolled her eyes under her mask. "I swear."

The dark magic in their hands turned golden, illuminating for less than a second each of the veins in their bodies. Raven let go of Batwoman, looking her up and down. "Speak, I don't have all night."

Instead of talking, she turned and walked to the window, opening it and looking down. "You can come in now," said the redhead, retreating a little.

The sorceress saw a figure entering slowly through the window, a blonde woman with a brunette in her arms. _But what-? By Azar_. In front of her eyes, the two most wanted faces of the country landed in her living room. Supergirl looked at her with sincere eyes, large and blue, slightly gloomy. "We are the ones who need your help, Ms Roth. Our family is trapped in the Underworld and we need you to help us get in touch with them."

"Supergirl and Lena Luthor..." Raven stared at the dark-haired human. She had a shiny medallion on her neck, with the symbol of a woman coming out of a well. She narrowed her eyes. _That symbol seems familiar._ "Your friends are getting weirder over time, Kane."

* * *

 **Lena**

 **9:16 PM**

Kara had moved the table and chairs from the living room into a corner, giving the sorceress ( _her name suits her_ ) enough space to draw a circle on the floor with a white dust. Lena did not know exactly what to think of the woman. Her eyes were disturbing, dark wells where no emotion shone, of a deep purple color. That woman gave her the creeps, and Lena did not know exactly why. _Maybe it has to do with her being half demon._ She scolded herself mentally. _I'm probably the last person that should be judging someone by their family._

She approached Raven a little. "Maybe I can help you with something."

"No," replied the other woman. In the lamplight, Lena would have sworn her skin was gray. "Your race doesn't get along particularly well with magic."

"My race?"

"Amazons," added Raven without looking at her. "They used to hunt magicians a couple of millennia ago. There's not much that an Amazon can do when it comes to magic."

Lena pressed her lips lightly, feeling the medallion cold against her skin. "How can you talk to the ghosts, Miss Roth?"

She looked at her briefly. "When I came to Earth, I tried to be a vigilante, asking the murder victims who their murderers had been and doing them justice, but it was years ago. I can only communicate with the ghosts trapped in the Underworlds," explained Raven to Lena. "If your friends had ended up on Hades's Elysian Fields or on Anubis's Dat, there would be no way to contact them. When a soul leaves the world, there is no way to retrieve it."

"Are you sure, Miss Roth? I have a friend from another Earth who came back from the dead," said Kara, rubbing her hair.

"There are no Lazarus Pits on our Earth, Supergirl."

Kate cleared her throat, looking down, another of Raven's books in her hands. "There must be some way to get them out."

Raven shook her head. "I'm afraid it's impossible, since the only known entrance is in Themiscyra and the Amazons are no longer what they were," she said seriously. "And stay away from my things. My magic is controlled by my emotions, and I'm sure no one wants to explode because Kane doesn't know how to stop being irritating."

Lena saw her girlfriend bite her lip, as if she wanted to say something but she was holding back. She walked to Kara, taking her hand and looking into her eyes briefly.

Kara smiled, turning to the sorceress. "Um, haven't you been in Metropolis lately?"

"No, I haven't been in Metropolis," replied Raven.

"You sure? In a downtown cafeteria?"

"You must have me confused with someone else," said Raven, finishing drawing the symbols on the floor, similar to letters of the Greek alphabet. Lena noticed that Kate's mouth twisted slightly, a detail that she found very curious.

The strange woman looked up. "Now I need you to sit around the circle, please. Miss Danvers, I must warn you that under no circumstances must you attempt to use your powers."

"Magic can harm Kryptonians, I know," said Kara as she sat at the other end of the circle, being imitated by Lena and Kate. Lena bit her lip impatiently, watching the symbols on the floor, thinking about how to beat people who had magic and aliens when she only had her intellect, no matter how big it was. ( _'And a goddess of gods who asks for her freedom, Lee'_ ), said Lex's voice in her head.

"Do you have any belongings of the people we are looking for? Preferably, an object with emotional value," asked Raven.

"I've got this," said Kara, reaching into her pocket, pulling out Alex's little golden ball. The Snitch spread its wings, like a bird awakening. "It's my sister's."

"A Snitch." Her dark eyes shone for less than a second. "Do you love your sister, Supergirl?"

"More than anyone else in the world, besides Lena."

"Then it'll work. The most powerful magic in the world is created out of love."

Batwoman smirked. "Sometimes, a good pair of shots are more effective than love."

Raven twisted the corner of her mouth. "I don't expect your limited mind to understand it, Kane."

Lena watched in silence, studying her scant facial expressions. _There's something in her._ Almost imperceptibly, the medallion warmed in her chest, as if the metal had been exposed to the sun. _I don't know if it's bad or good, but there's something in her._ She took a deep breath, trying to think like a businesswoman. _We need her for now_. Unconsciously, her hand began to rub her medallion. Realizing it, Lena stopped and put both hands on her knees, trying not to attract attention.

Kara put the Snitch in the middle of the circle, the brightness of the ball reflected in the blue of her eyes. The Snitch fluttered slightly, bouncing impatiently on the floor. Lena took her hand, looking into her eyes with encouragement. Kara interlaced their fingers.

Raven closed her eyes. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos." Her chest rose and fell slowly, barely breathing. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos." Lena began to feel a little tired, as if something was slowly drinking from her soul. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos..." The heat of the medallion increased, but strangely Lena felt no pain, only euphoria, a sudden discharge of adrenaline throughout her body. _"Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"_

 _ ***Zszszszs***_ A white sphere appeared inches above the circle on the ground, shining like a small moon in the darkest night. Lena felt her breath escape between her lips _. It's impossible_. The ball of energy emitted an almost imperceptible white smoke, as if the land of the ghosts were made of ashes and flames, and these could pass through the sphere. The medallion on her chest was as hot as a little sun. _Stop_ , thought Lena, glancing at Kate. _Stop, she will notice._

 **Beware**

 _Beware of what?_

 **Gods. Evil, unworthy creatures, they want you dead but I will not let them approach.**

 _There are no gods here._

 **There are gods on the other side. A god of death and another one whose identity I do not know. You can feel them, therefore I can also feel them.**

Raven's eyes were white, shining like two stars. "Supergirl, try to call your sister."

Kara leaned slightly forward, bringing her face to the magic sphere. "Alex?" She said in a trembling, slightly tense voice. "Alex, sister, can you hear me? Are you there? Alex?"

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **At that moment**

Contrary to the pain she had felt before, Maggie began to feel very good, as if her body had lost all her weight and her soul was flying. She blinked a couple of times, looking at Alex, who was still holding her sword. _Someone's coming_. Diana was alert at her side, watching around with attentive eyes. "Alex, Diana, I'm feeling something."

Both women looked at her worriedly, not lowering their guard. Maggie looked around, trying to find the ghost. _Where's Alura?_ She barely felt the air in her lungs, as if part of her brain were asleep, feeling the closeness of a familiar presence. It c _an't be._ "Lena?"

Diana's eyes widened in confusion, one second before _**(*ZSZSZSZSZ*)**_ the white sphere appeared and its force made them fall backward, landing on the sand.

Maggie growled and cursed at the horrible feeling of sand in her eyes. She rose quickly, her throat drying and her heart racing, as she stared up at the huge white sphere. What _the hell is this?_ She felt she knew the answer, despite not being able to remember why or which. _Damn it, why am I so sure this has to do with Lena?_

Alex grunted and stood, still aiming at the sphere with her sword. "But what the fuck is this?"

Diana spat the sand from her mouth. "Looks like a-"

 _'Alex?'_

Maggie lost her breath.

 _'Alex, sister, can you hear me? Are you there? Alex?'_

"Kara?" Alex took a step forward, lowering her sword. "Kara, is that you?"

 _'Alex!'_ Shouted the voice from the sphere _. 'Alex, you're okay!? Are you all okay?!'_

"Kara..." A painfully relieved smile grew on her face. "We're fine! Maggie and Diana are here with me! How is this possible?! What is this thing?!"

 _'It's magic. It's a long story, but-'_

Diana interrupted. "Is my daughter with you? Is Lena okay?"

 _'I'm fine, Mother. I'm here,'_ answered Lena's voice.

"Oh, Lena..." sobbed Diana with a smile.

 _'We're in Gotham. National City was attacked. They have taken them all. Kara and I are looking for them with your friends the bats.'_

 _'Alex,_ ' said Kara's voice. _'Where are you? Is there any way to get you out?'_

"No. No no no you have to keep away from Themiscyra, don't come here. We're on our way back. Hades told us how to get out. We'll be fine, trust me," said Alex quickly. "Kara, listen to me, I don't know how much time has passed, but I know you and you've spent all this time worrying about me. I need you to stop doing it."

 _'What? Alex, no...'_

"Kara, listen, you're in danger too. Lena is in danger."

 _'We already know that.'_

"No, you don't understand! Hades told us that the gods approved of what happened in Themiscyra. The gods want her dead, you understand? There are people called The Truth, Veritas, they want to kill Lena."

 _'It's Lutessa.'_

"What?" asked Diana incredulously.

 _'Mother,'_ answered Lena's strange voice. _'Listen to me. Lutessa is alive, she's the leader of Veritas. Hippolyta told me they have Mom.'_

Diana let out a sound between a moan and a sigh of relief. "I thought-thought-forget it. How did they take her? My mother is with you?"

 _'No, she's not here, but she's fine. Lutessa has Mom and Winn, and M'gann and Mr J'onzz. We thought she had you too. When Hippolyta told us where you were, we looked for a way to talk to you.'_

"Lena, I'm going to get out of here." Diana moved a little closer to the sphere, its glow reflecting in her blue eyes. "I'm going to find you. I'll never allow anyone to hurt you again. Please be very careful, I can't lose you again."

 _'Everything will be fine. I promise.'_

* * *

 **The Ghost**

 **At that moment**

Alura had moved away from the travelers, appearing at the place where the song had originated, not far from there. The desert was as infinite as ever, but somehow it seemed less dark, something that only happened when one of _them_ came down to the abode of the god of death. _"I can feel you. Show youself."_

"I have never been hidden."

She turned, finding him, the source of the clarity. A young man, bright as a small sun, whose mere presence radiated pain in her whole being. "You are the ghost of another world, trapped here by a misfortune."

 _"Why did you wake the dead, Lord Hermes?"_

"I was hoping to get your attention," answered the god. "I have an order for you."

 _"I can only obey the God of Death."_

"You will obey me when you know what I want. I am clement, I offer you something in return." Hermes approached. "I know you have not forgotten the reason you ended up here. What you need to move on."

* * *

 **Lena**

 **9:27 PM**

 _'Please be very careful, I can't lose you again.'_

Lena sighed, her eyes heavy and the heat in her chest threatening to melt her heart. "Everything will be fine." _I'll keep you all safe, no matter what it costs me._ "I promise." Out of the corner of her eye, she checked Raven's condition, still holding the trance, with her eyes white. Kate was watching them in silence.

 _'I love you, My Sun and Stars.'_

Lena bit her lip, gathering courage to say the words she had planned to say under other circumstances. "I love you too, Mother."

Batwoman gently cleared her throat. "Sorry, I don't want to interrupt," said Kate. "Maggie's there? I need to talk to her."

A couple of seconds passed until a slightly hoarse voice was heard through the sphere _. 'Who is it?'_

"I'm Kate."

' _Who?'_

"Kate Kane, Mags. How many Kates have you dated? You better not answer me, I don't want to know."

 _'What?!'_ asked Maggie's voice. _'Kate? What are you doing there?'_

"Who do you think has saved their lives? I assure you it wasn't Batman."

 _'Kate, I-Thanks.'_

"Give them to me in person when you get out. For now, I need your help, Mags," said Kate, her voice slightly louder. "I need to find these terrorists."

 _'I imagine you've already investigated Lillian Luthor.'_

"That woman knows how to hide her footprints."

 _'I was investigating her before coming to Themiscyra. Before kidnapping Lena, she was experimenting with stem cells to try to heal Lutessa. But all members of her team died suspiciously.'_

"You think it was Veritas's thing?"

 _'Maybe. There's also the possibility that Luthor did it on her own, we don't know when she joined them. You can find out if you search for clues in the doctors' deaths. My notes are-"_

"I already have them, on your desk."

 _' Were you in my apartment?'_

"Sorry, Mags, but it was an emergency." Lena noticed that the redhead smiled for less than a second. "You said you talked to Hades," she said. "Did he say why the whole world suddenly wants to kill Diana and her family?"

 _'He said it. It's not for Diana, it's for Lena.'_

Lena's eyes widened in horror. _No..._

 _'Listen, Kate. There are two creatures. One is something like Veritas's god, and the other is known as The Watcher.'_

She saw Kara clenching her fists from the corner of her eye, undoubtedly preparing for danger, her blue eyes darkening slightly. Batwoman stared at the white sphere with her mouth slightly open. _Maggie, no, shut up. You'll make them discover us._

 _'The Watcher wants to use- What are you doing? Hey, stop!'_

"Mags?" asked Kate with concern.

Kara leaned forward. "Alex!"

 _'Kara, forget me! We'll be fine! Protect Lena! Find J'onn!'_

"Alex, what's going on!?"

 _'NOTHING! They need you, Kara! I believe in you! I love y-!'_

In front of Lena's eyes, the sphere disappeared, like a small star burning the last of its energy. Kara turned to Raven quickly. "What happened!? Make her come back!"

Her eyes stopped flashing white, regaining their dark violet color. "I can't."

"Roth..."

"The spell works like a phone, Kane," snarled Raven. "And something just cut the cable."

"She was about to tell me something important!" yelled Batwoman.

Raven did not even flinch. "I don't have energy to try again tonight, Kane."

Lena felt a small pang of pain in her stomach, being careful not to take her gaze away from Batwoman. _I must do what is necessary to eliminate Veritas before it's too late._ Her heart crumpled as she watched Kara pick up the Snitch from the floor, stroking the little ball with furious glassy eyes. _I'll find you wherever you are, Lutessa. I'm going to stop you, even if I have to die for it._

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **Twenty seconds earlier**

 _'You said that you talked to Hades. Did he say why the whole world suddenly wants to kill Diana and her family?'_

Maggie remembered the hooded figure in the castle, warning them that they had become enemies of the gods themselves. That Veritas would not stop until they killed Lena. "He said it. It's not for Diana, it's for Lena."

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Alura appear again, her face carved in stone. Diana approached the ghost.

"Listen, Kate. There are two creatures. One is something like Veritas's god, and the other is known as The Watcher."

Alura passed through Diana, looking at the sphere with angry eyes. _"How dare you disturb this world?"_

"Alura, we need only a moment," said Diana, irritated.

By Alex's gaze, she seemed to be suspecting what was happening despite not being able to see the ghost. Maggie concentrated on talking to Kate. "The Watcher wants to use- What are you doing?"

It was fast and frightening like a predator's attack. Alura pulled a hammer from her black robe, and began to hit the sphere in front of Maggie. Diana shouted _'No!_ ' furiously behind her, trying to hold her, action as useless as if she was trying to hold the air. Maggie watched with a start as the sphere began to crack with each hit, as if it were made of glass.

"Hey, stop!" yelled Maggie, anger exploding in her chest. "Stop!"

Maggie took the sword from Alex's hand, so fast that she could only glimpse at her stunned, confused face. Alura hit the sphere again, cracking it like a broken mirror. Alex was yelling something at Kara. Diana was trying to stop her, but all her blows passed throught the ghost. But when Maggie attacked her in the arm that held the hammer, Alura's mouth opened in a hideous mute cry and the object fell to the ground. _What the hell? I can touch her?_ Alura drew back, wide-eyed, her teeth clenched. " _Any intrusion of the living is forbidden!"_

"Are you crazy!? We're talking to Kara! We've to warn her about the go-!"

 _ ***CrrAsh***_

Maggie left the sentence unfinished as the sphere shattered, leaving a trembling Alex in front of a small pile of broken glass.

 _"My obligation is to stop mediums who try to cross the border into this world, those are the rules,"_ she answered coldly. _"You broke the rules."_

Diana stepped dangerously close, inches from her face. "You've destroyed the only way I had to talk to my daughter." Her eyes flashed in a furious blue fire. "No wonder you're still trapped here. If this is just your soul, you must have been a horrible being in your life, and I don't want to imagine how much Kara suffered because of _you_."

 _"You don't know anything about my daughter."_

Maggie felt a whirlwind taking the sword from her hand. Alex pointed to the space in front of Diana. "WHERE is SHE!? Tell me, where is she!"

"Alex..."

"Show yourself!" shouted Alex. "Let me see your face, damn you!"

 _"Tell your friend to calm down."_

"Why did you do that!? Why!?" Alex tried to attack her, but being unable to see her, she simply threw blows into the air. "Show yourself and I'll show you what I did to Astra, Alura!"

Maggie saw the ghost's expresion change into a terrifying grimace, the first emotion she saw in that face. " _You..."_ She approached Alex. "were _she the one who killed my twin?"_

"To save someone." Maggie forced Alex to stay still, still looking at the ghost suspiciously. "But if you hardly care about the daughter you had in life, why should your care about your sister?"

Alura ignored her words and moved forward, near the broken glass, to pick up her hammer. _"We must continue our way."_

"We're not finished," growled Maggie. "Where did you go? Why weren't you here?"

 _"I was looking for the origin of the song."_ The ghost began to walk. Controlling her frustration, Maggie took Alex's hand and the three followed her. _"I went to find out why they started singing."_

"Tell us," said Diana dryly.

 _"Someone has come to visit Hades."_

Maggie exchanged a look of concern with Diana. The detective told her girlfriend the words of the ghost. Alex just nodded, her lips tight, resigned not to see or hear half of what was happening around her.

"Who has come?" asked Maggie.

 _"I don't know, I could not see the visitor."_

"You're lying."

 _"Why should I?"_

 _I don't trust you_ , thought Maggie with her teeth clenched.

Diana cleared her throat. "Maggie was able to touch you a moment ago."

 _"It seems your friend is not just a simple seer,"_ she said without stopping. _"But you should never touch a ghost."_

Maggie felt as if someone had thrown a bucket of cold water over her. _Think, Sawyer, think._ Alura always refused to share most of the information. Maggie's brain kept screaming danger, her instinct turned on like mad. _I have to do something_. Diana whispered something to Alex, so quietly that Maggie could not hear it. _We_ _can't stop or go back. I have to do something._

* * *

 **The half demon Woman**

 **9:42 PM**

Raven looked at them one last time. In some strange way, Supergirl looked better; less tense and more determined. More like herself. She had even helped to tidy up the mess that was her living room, when according to her experience most would simply have gone once they had gotten what they were looking for _. I don't think it's a big deal for her with her speed._ Once she was done, she approached Raven and shook her hand. The sorceress was momentarily surprised by the physical contact.

"Thank you," said Supergirl. "You've helped us a lot."

"We couldn't hear what Maggie said," replied Batwoman in a bad mood. "Something doesn't want us to know."

"We'll figure it out," said Lena Luthor seriously. "Maggie told us how to find more information. If we find the connection between the deaths of Lillian's colleagues, we might find one of the members."

Kate did not look very happy. "You sound too optimistic."

"I am obliged not to be pessimistic. To be pessimistic is to surrender and surrender means more people will die."

Raven noticed that the Luthor heiress had her arms folded across her chest, over the medallion, as if she needed to touch the metal _. I've seen a medallion like this before somewhere. Perhaps in some book of the library of Azarath?_ " Kane, those terrorists you're looking for, they use magic, don't they?"

"We believe so." Batwoman looked at her intently.

"And that medallion is magic?" asked Raven, looking at Lena.

The Amazon girl nodded, her face calm as the waters of a stream. "It's a force field, a kind of protection."

"Usually I can trace the magic back to its source. Give it to me."

For less than a few seconds, so fast that Raven hesitated to have seen it, Luthor's eyes changed from blankness to panic. That would have been more or less understandable if at her side, Supergirl's posture had not also changed to something that felt like protective instinct. _A Kryptonian who seems ready to throw me against the wall_. Raven held out her hand. _Maybe I should feel intimidated, if I'd afford myself to feel something._

Slowly, Lena Luthor took off her medallion and handed it to her, her hand trembling slightly, like a leaf in the wind. Raven brought the object near to her eyes _. A woman coming out of a well. A 'V' etched on the other side._ She closed her eyes, concentrating on the object in her hands, as she had learned in Azarath.

She could feel absolutely nothing in the medallion.

"I can't feel anything," she said, slightly astonished.

Kate sighed. "Their magic must be too advanced to be traced, otherwise we would have found them."

"No, Kane, I can't feel any magic in this thing." She handed it back to Lena Luthor, who put it around her neck. "It's just an ordinary gold medallion."

Supergirl approached her partner. "Well, that's not true. This thing has protected Lena from the explosion at L-Corp," said Supergirl putting her hands in her pockets.

Batwoman approached Raven. "Are you sure, Roth?"

"I just know that I should be able to feel magic inside, even though I can't track it down," said Raven, looking at Lena's chest. "I've never seen anything like it, and perhaps the wisest thing to do is to go home and look in Azarath's library. And I'll ask Azar if she knows anything."

Lena Luthor narrowed her eyes slightly. "Azarath? I've never heard of that place."

"It's not on Earth." Raven shrugged. "It's difficult to explain, you can only travel there with magic, but if there's information about your medallion, Miss Luthor, it's in my home."

The dark-haired woman did not seem entirely convinced, but she nodded slowly, her remarkably beautiful face hardened.

"I want to help," said Raven, trying to sound warm, not knowing if she was achieving it. "I also have people who are everything to me, and I'd do anything to protect them. I can understand what you're going through."

Lena Luthor pursed her lips, as if pondering whether to say something or not. "They have my mother, Miss Roth."

Raven sighed. "I know that's horrible, my mother was also kidnapped a couple of years ago. Kate saved her."

"At least Eliza's safe," said Supergirl with her sad look.

Raven felt her heart beating slightly faster. "You know she's okay?"

"As long as she stays away from me. The last thing I need is to turn her into a target." She sighed. "Thank you again, Raven, for being our ally in all this, we need it right now."

She allowed herself the slightest of smiles. "Supergirl's side is the right side."

The corners of her lips rose feebly, a grimace too small to be considered a smile. Lena Luthor shook her hand, Raven thought for a moment that the poor woman was playing at a disadvantage in a whole new world. _Not long ago she was normal. Now she's an Amazon, she's in a relationship with an alien, and her family is threatened by gods and magical terrorists._ She would not want to be in Lena's shoes, with her demonic father she had enough.

"Maybe you could learn manners from your new friends, Kane. You would make our lives much easier."

Batwoman did not respond as the three of them approached the window. Supergirl took Lena Luthor in her arms and got out softly, without making the slightest noise. Batwoman pulled out her grapping hook gun.

"Kate."

She stopped to look at her. "What?"

"I'm not evil. When will you realize it?" asked Raven, controlling the mixed emotions that the masked woman always awakened in her stomach.

"I realized that a long time ago."

"Really?." She crossed her arms. "You say you're not like your cousin, but he doesn't trust anyone and you're doing the same thing."

She stood for a couple of seconds watching her in silence. "I don't make friends, Rachel."

The female soldier disappeared out the window, her black and red cloak fluttering in the wind. _Dumb._ Raven put her hands in her pockets, wishing, not for the first time in her life, to have been born normal.

Three minutes passed for her to return to normal, with her scattered emotions totally under control. Sighing slowly as she mentally repeated her mantra, she pulled her cellphone out of her pocket and began to check her email. She had the usual spam messages, and a message from P. _Finally._

 _'R,_

 _E.D hides in New York. Moore Street 1986'_

 _She felt a small wave of triumph that made her smile._

 _'P,_

 _I'm coming._

 _R.'_

* * *

 _I hear them singing_  
 _I know because I should be singing too_  
 _Instead, I'll just go to sleep._  
 _I love you Lena_  
 _I wish we had more time, Little Princess._

* * *

 **The Only Survivor**

 **2:50 AM (Current Local Time in Scotland)**

The ceiling had exactly two hundred and twenty-three brown spots. Powergirl had counted them all, lying on the floor of her cell. One of her most useful skills acquired on Earth was her ability to pay attention to many things at the same time. To Adam it had always been confusing how she could read a book, do homework and talk at the same time. This ability allowed her to pay attention to Winn's words and to recall with painful precision her last moments on Krypton, before her aunt Astra had put her in that pod.

 _'And then Lena alerted the police about her own adoptive mother. Everything changed from then on, that's when she earned our respect. Y'know, her adoptive mother is as nice as a toothache, but it must have been very difficult for her...'_

"Did she love her?" Karen asked out loud.

 _'Um...'_ Winn's voice hesitated. _'It's complicated. Lena's adoptive mother isn't a good person, but Lena always hoped that in time she might change,'_ the man sighed loudly. _'But at some point we all get tired of waiting.'_

"Then it wasn't a difficult decision to make," replied Powergirl, her eyes fixed on the ceiling, thinking of her Aunt Astra's last good bye. "Humans make their decisions based on love. Correct and incorect, right and wrong, humans only care until their loved ones are in danger. No offense, but you all are a stupid race that only seeks power and most of the time refuse to save yourselves."

 _'That's uncomfortably true,'_ said Winn. _'We humans are, selfish, stupid, and quite blind and indifferent to our own problems. Sometimes, to protect us, we're willing to hurt others.'_

Karen bit her lip. _I want to be selfish, just for once._

 _'You know? I've been thinking about my friend Kara lately,'_ said Winn in a low voice, as if suddenly he was very tired. _'She often faces difficult decisions, but she always chooses to do the right thing. She always knows what's right... Sometimes I wonder how she knows. What's good and what's wrong. And how she has the strength to do the right thing even if it's painful.'_

 _I don't know if I can._ Karen felt her eyes fill with tears. _I don't know if I can be that strong. It would be as if they died because of me a second time, if I don't kill that woman. How can I do the right thing when the only options I have are bad? The right thing can't be to give up Adam's bad jokes, Carter beating me in video games, Catherine complaining about milennials. James and Snapper kissing on SnapCo. Alexandra being a good mentor. Even Margaret, the annoying one. They can't have gone. I can't let them go._

"Those Lena and Kara sound like good people," said Karen repressing her anguish. _Please tell me they aren't good. Tell me they're bad. Tell me they hurt people and should disappear. Tell me please._

 _'They are the best people I know.'_ Winn sighed loudly. _'Do you know the law of karma? To do good things so that good things happen to you? There are people who prove that this is a lie. They only do good things, but bad things happen to them. Sometimes I just wonder why...'_ Silence. _'It doesn't matter.'_

Karen closed her eyes, breathing all the air her lungs could contain. Her heart ached intensely in her chest, as if Krypton had exploded again. _Why always me?_ She tried to remember her aunt Astra's reassuring smile. She needed to regain control of her emotions, stop thinking like Kara Zor-L and Karen Starr and start thinking like Powergirl. _Is there a Powergirl if my Earth doesn't even exist anymore?_ She did not know. _What am I going to do? What would Aunt Astra do? What would Catherine do?_ She squeezed her eyes shut. _They wouldn't be crying pathetically on the floor._

Counting to ten, Karen gathered strength to sit on the floor, leaning her back against the wall. _They would stand firm._ _My Aunt Astra would remind me that I am a strong member of the House of L, like when my parents were sent to Fort Rozz. That the House of L doesn't act according to fear and pain, but hope. Catherine would tell me to make the decision that I won't regret later._

Powergirl watched the green glow of her handcuffs, feeling a slight pain from her wrists to her arms _. I can't._ _Powergirl vowed to protect humanity, even if it's not mine, even if they don't deserve it._ She rubbed her wrists slowly, trying to ease the pain. She was tired of feeling pain. _And that means I've failed them all again._ It was the first time she felt trapped inside her own body. _I've run out of options_. Someone screamed in the corner of her mind. Karen wondered if it was the echo of one of her many nightmares or a repressed memory. "Hey, Winn..."

 _'Yes?'_ asked the boy on the other side of the wall.

"What color are Lena's eyes?"

 _'Um, greens,'_ answered the boy, confused. _'Why do you ask?'_

Karen laughed lightly, without any joy. _I knew_. "I've always liked green eyes."

* * *

 **Lena**

 **11:45 PM**

As the three of them walked through a entrance tunnel, Lena realized that, against her best wishes, she was getting used to the coldness of the Batcave, the distant screech of the bats, the cats following her almost everywhere. However, something was different this time around. Lena could feel _Her_ in the back of her mind, as if _She_ were waiting for the opportune moment to speak again. The almost cozy warmth on her chest proved it. Kate had remained silent, but Lena knew the soldier was only organizing her next plan of action. Kara, on the other hand, had not said much during the trip, lost in her thoughts as if they were a maze and she were trying to find the Minotaur. "Maggie mentioned the doctors who worked with Lillian."

"Hugh Laurie, Remy Hadley, Robert Chase, Chi Park, Lisa Cuddy and Eric Foreman," recited Kate by heart. "All of them dead the same year Lena was kidnapped and Lutessa disappeared. I thought that clue was a dead end, but Maggie thinks it could lead to something, so I'll take a look." She pursed her lips. "She was the best detective in Gotham."

Lena smiled sideways. "Maggie is the best detective anywhere."

"Don't you feel worried about the fact that mythological beings and magic terrorists want to kill you, Ms Luthor?"

 _Someone always wants to kill me._ "Of course," said Lena, feeling Kara's hand caress hers. "And confused. No god has tried attacking me."

"There's only one reason for that," said Batwoman. "They can't do it. If they could approach you, Veritas wouldn't exist."

"I see that gods are just as clement everywhere," said Kara sarcastically, folding her arms, though Lena could barely see her in the darkness of the tunnel.

Batwoman pursed her lips. "At least we've been able to draw a conclusion. If the _gods_ want you dead, somehow you pose a threat to them. Maggie said you're in great danger."

"I wish she'd have said why," answered the brunette in a neutral voice.

Kate did not answer.

After what seemed like hours, the three women got out from the tunnel into the illuminated main hall of the Batcave. Lena watched as Kara hardened slightly, like a hound sniffing a clue. _She's heard something_. She followed Kara's gaze, finding Wayne sitting at the computer, with an open book in his hands. Batman was staring at her, his eyes cold and as hard as a steel wall. Lena knew something was wrong as soon as she saw his eyes, and her suspicions were confirmed when she recognized the book in his hands.

"My son Dick was able to restore it with the help of a friend." He stood, walking toward them and giving the book to Lena. "Almost the whole book is written with some kind of code that doesn't seem to follow an order, but there are two texts that follow a certain logic, one of which is this one," he said, pointing to the page. "My computer can't find what language it is."

Lena's heart fluttered in her chest. "It's Banen, the language of Bana-Mighdall."

"Do you know what it says?"

"My mother just taught me some loose words, but I think this is a kind of children's story." _Lena and the Great Monster. At the beginning of time, before the war of three million years..._ "I'm afraid I can't translate it."

"I can," said Kara, smiling slightly. Without a word, she took the book from her hands. "I learn things faster than humans, and in the time I was in Themiscyra, I was able to deduce almost all of the Banas's language, let me take a look at it." At Lena's concern, Kara's eyes flew down the page, taking only a few seconds to read it completely. "It's an old legend. The story of, um, there's no exact translation for this word... The Monitor."

Batman nodded. "Please continue."

"It says that she was a kind of magical creature, who was at war against a great villain called... Anti-Monitor. The Anti-Monitor was the winner, and murdered the Monitor, destroying her heart. According to the text, then the Anti-Monitor was killed by the gods, as they saw him as a threat."

 _Kara, are you lying? That's ridiculous._

"Wait, are they both dead? Are you sure it says that?" asked Batwoman, approaching Kara. "Maggie mentioned two creatures: Veritas's super god and a Watcher. Kara, are you sure they aren't the same ones?"

Her girlfriend nodded. "This old legend is pretty clear about it. I don't know what Maggie meant, but here the creatures have been dead for millennia. They can't be the same."

"I understand," said Batman dryly. "Supergirl, there's another text a few pages further on, which I've translated with my computer. Would you mind reading it out loud?"

Kara nodded, searching for the text Wayne had indicated. Her mouth parted and her eyes widened. "It's Lillian's handwriting."

Lena felt a sudden pang in her heart, a mixture of surprise, fear and pain _. Lillian._ It would be very fitting for her adoptive mother to ruin everything even in a coma. _What did you write? How much does Wayne know?_

"...*It was not easy, but I managed to get hold of a gap and keep it safe, in secret from the others. I do not think anyone ever knows what I sacrificed to achieve it. According to my calculations, everything will go well while Diana remains ignorant. None of the ancient texts tell me exactly what I must do, they only offer me confused prophecies and inconsistent dreams. I know what I must do, but not how I must do it. Somewhere in this huge world of which so many people ignore, so much is the Chaos Door and I must find it. I think the list of possible locations could be reduced to four places, A1, A2, B1 and T1. It could be any, and it's particularly difficult to keep everything a secret, so the best option is to watch over the gap and wait for the time to run its course. If my calculations are accurate, in one or two years it will develop its true nature and an incalculable and incomprehensible power. If all goes well, I will not have to look for the Door, the gap will lead me to it*." Kara stopped reading, taking a deep breath, her shoulders slightly taut. "Just when I thought she couldn't be crazier."

"However, it has shed a little light on various things." Bruce put his hands in his pockets, even though his face was far from relaxed. "Your mother mentions that she stole something from Diana to find something called the Chaos Door, just before writing those codes about its possible locations. Something called The Gap. You don't have to be a genius to come to the conclusion that she's referring to you."

Lena nodded slowly, resisting the urge to look at Kara. She sighed, feigning exhaustion. "Maybe they're afraid I'll make their existence public. They know Maggie and I had proof, we were looking for answers. I just need to make them public to expose Veritas and Lutessa."

Bruce nodded. "Sounds logical, but it doesn't explain why your mother kidnapped you."

 _If he says 'your mother' again to refer to Lillian, I think I might try to kill him._ "Lillian wrote 'Diana must remain ignorant'. I used to think she did it just to hurt her, but with Lutessa alive that doesn't make sense."

"I'll tell you what I think," said Wayne, pursing his lips. "I think you're that Gap Lillian mentions in her diary."

Lena was sure she could have pushed Wayne, caught up with Kara, and fled so fast that no one would ever catch up with them. But of course, she was smarter than that, enough to know that would confirm the culpability Wayne was so eager to attribute to her. "That sounds like a logical solution, but the book just confirmed that it's impossible. I can't be the Gap that Lillian mentions, however, Veritas undoubtedly thinks I'm related or that I know what it is."

"Why do you say it's impossible?"

"Because Lillian says _'In a year or two, it will develop an incalculable power'_. She wrote that when I was two years old. It's been thirty years, Mr Wayne, and I have no 'incalculable power'." said Lena, using her professional voice. "I'm just a businesswoman."

The old bat pressed his lips imperceptibly, nodding a bit. He turned to his cousin. "How did it go with Rachel Roth?"

"We were able to talk to Maggie, Wonder Woman and Agent Danvers. They were okay, but something broke off the trance before Maggie told me something important." Batwoman bit the inside of her cheek. "I'll tell you what I think. Neither the Greek gods nor Veritas's 'Super-god' can approach Lena, for whatever reason, and that's why Veritas is pursuing her, mere human. That means that Lena's theory is possible. What's more dangerous for a secret sect than a journalist and a millionaire with influences?"

"It doesn't explain the Gap thing." Batman turned away, returning to the computer. "Whether it's a weapon, a code, a person or information, there's only one thing certain: it's related to Miss Luthor, and I will find out what it is."

Kate suppressed a yawn, walking toward the other chair. "I will go back and review the information about those doctors, why don't you go to sleep a little? No offense, but you clearly need it."

"Usually I don't need much sleep," said Kara, rubbing her hands together. "Just an hour or two. It's very useful for patrolling at night." She sighed. "I miss patrolling."

"You must remain hidden," said Batman without turning.

"I know, Mr. Wayne." Kara folded her arms, exhausted. "Maybe if I wear a mask..."

"People would notice it anyway," said Wayne, turning in his chair. "I understand your need to do good, Ms Danvers. I know you miss being Supergirl, but even if you borrowed one of Kate's suits and called yourself Batgirl, people would notice. Or worse, Veritas."

Kara nodded, sighing. "I understand." Her eyes met Lena's, looking away quickly. "And by the way, it's Superwoman from now on. Ms Grant finally agreed to change it."

The corners of his lips rose slightly. "I'll remember."

Kara and Lena turned to head for the stairs, their footsteps echoing in the immensity of the cave. Before she touched the door handle, Lena heard Wayne's voice, stopping her.

"Miss Luthor," he said. "Why do you think a text as seemingly trivial as an old legend in Banen is in such an important book to Veritas?"

Lena sighed, feeling the pain pounding in her temples. _I'm sick of him._ "Maybe it's not as trivial as it looks, Mr Wayne," she said before opening the door and climbing the stairs.

* * *

 **The heartless Woman**

 **3:04 AM (Current Local Time in Scotland)**

The yellow moon glowed in the window, high in the sky, being an indifferent witness to all the errors of the inhabitants of the Earth, human and not human. From the window of her office, Tess was staring at it, listening to Mozart paying homage to the dead through an old record player that had belonged to Queen Delphini Black I. _The singing of the dead pursues the living._ She sighed slowly. _Your loved ones shouldn't suffer for you, Lena._

"So she has finally finished?"

 _'She's sleeping, Tess,'_ answered Teague _. 'Goodness hasn't told me what's going to happen. I hope it's something fun.'_

"It will be something useful," replied the woman. "Did you take the Martian to the island? Is he already connected?"

 _' Yes, Slade is with him. The Amazons surely are happy to see a man.'_ Teague laughed a little. _'Goodness wants you to be there when she wakes up.'_

"I'll decide on it after talking to Powergirl."

 _'Why do you even bother? You know she'll tell you no.'_

 _Psychopaths don't understand the meaning of subtlety._ "Maybe she'll tell me yes."

 _'She won't.'_

"I'll try to convince her."

 _'You can't save her, Tess. She doesn't want to be saved.'_

Lutessa closed her eyes, listening to the music. "If we succeed tomorrow and the Gap dies in Gotham, it will not be necessary to save anyone. Otherwise, Powergirl will have to be our backup plan."

 _'Were you serious about her family?'_

"Very serious," said Tess, pulling away her wheelchair to her desk. "If you take an oath and don't do it, your allies become enemies."

 _'It's a double shame she's going to tell you no. Do you need her now, or do you want her to talk to my man a little more?'_

"Wait ten minutes and bring her in. And don't forget that Helena Wayne's bedtime was half an hour ago."

With the absence of Teague's voice, Tess was finally able to fully enjoy Mozart's music, violins and pianos honoring the thousands of souls who roamed the Underworld without finding peace. She closed her eyes, thinking of white walls, an isolated house on the outskirts of New York, orphans lost forever, rain soaking her hopes, sharks' teeth biting out her innocence.

 _Lena has to die._ Tess reached for an aspirin on her desk. _Nothing else matters. She has to die at any price._

 _' Powergirl on the way.'_

Tess hurried to swallow the aspirin, then drank a glass of water. This tasted much more bitter than usual, as if she were drinking vinegar. At that moment, the record player stopped, ending the singing of the dead. But the song kept reproducing in her mind, with more acute voices, thousands of children's voices singing from their graves.

The door opened, letting in the guards escorting the woman with the helmet on her head. They made Powergirl sit in front of her, then took off her lead helmet. Tess noticed the undeniable signs of sadness on her face, swollen eyes, dilated pupils, wet cheeks. Karen stared at her, staying calm and strong despite the vacuum in her eyes. _Those are the eyes of a survivor._

"I want us to talk alone," said Powergirl, putting her handcuffed hands on her knees.

Tess turned to the guards. "Wait outside, please."

The guards turned and went out in silence, not looking at either of the two women. Tess studied Powergirl's face, trying to understand the thoughts of that potentially lethal and dangerous creature. _And maybe, that way, I also could understand Supergirl's._

"You have had some time to think," said Tess, without breaking the eye contact. "I need an answer." Powergirl lifted her chin slightly. "I know what I would answer if I were you."

"And what would you answer?"

"I would say yes without hesitation," said Tess. "Not every day you can recover the people you have lost, the ones you have loved."

Powergirl sat upright in her chair, pressing her lips together as she nodded. "Once, a couple of years ago, one of my enemies kidnapped my brother Adam. This guy wanted me to free his father from prison, and in return he'd release Adam. When I caught him, I told him to let me talk with him to make sure he was okay. The only thing Adam told me was _'Don't do it, Kar. You can't give in to what this criminal wants. Powergirl is a sign of justice and that's more important than anything, more important than me'_." The blonde put her handcuffed hands on the desk. "He was the one who gave me hope, who made me believe in people. If it were up to me, I'd say yes, because I'd be willing to do anything to get them back, like that time with Adam." She looked away, her eyes turning into glass. "So instead of making the decision on my own, I've decided to do what Adam would do in my place, and he'd say no." She looked at her again. "Adam would say that nothing justifies taking a life, that the end doesn't justify the means. Adam would do the right thing even if it hurts."

"And he would be wrong, because the end always justifies the means," replied Tess. "By your decision, billions could die. I don't understand that you don't want to avoid that."

"I will not murder two innocent people."

"Not even to save millions of lives?"

"Find another way."

"There is not."

"Yes, there is. Murder is never the answer, it never really fixes the problem."

"Have you ever heard the dead singing, Kara?"

The Kryptonian looked honestly confused for a moment, her head tilted slightly.

"Their songs are full of grief and pain," continued Tess, staring at her. "But someone has to listen to them, somebody has to make the hard decisions, the ones no one wants to take, someone has to be willing to make sacrifices for the common good, and I'm sorry, but I'm not surprised, you're not strong enough."

"You can't decide who lives and who dies, Miss Mercer," replied Karen coldly.

"You're wrong again. If you don't make a decision, it doesn't matter what your values are or whatever hope you decide to have, because people will die for your lack of action. Someone has to be the scapegoat," she said mechanically. "I am the person who lives in the True world, I am the one who decides how many deaths to have in my conscience. Hope is a luxury that I can't afford, Kara."

"When I received these powers, I thought they would be the way to prevent what happened to Krypton from happening to Earth." Karen spoke softly, much to Tess's surprise. "But then I met people who showed me the opposite. There's always hope, it's never too late."

"Do you have hope, Kara Zor-L?"

"No," she said sadly. "It died with all those I loved, it died with my Earth. But this Earth could still have it."

The medallion in her chest began to burn, the slight pain catching the attention of the woman in the wheelchair. "It's always been too late, from the moment the first bacteria appeared in the Multiverse." She put a finger to the earpiece of her ear, without breaking the eye contact with the alien. "You can go in now."

Immediately, the guards re-entered the room, turning to Karen and forcing her to rise from the chair. The alien looked at her with almost resigned eyes. "You're going to kill me?"

"No, but I think you want me to." Tess pulled her chair out of the desk, pushing forward. "We will erase your memory. I will send you to Earth-19, one of the few Earths where the existence of the Multiverse is known. Its sunless climate will prevent you from having powers, although you will never drink coffee again. But I guess it's still better than your cell."

"No," the Kryptonian said, her face breaking. "This isn't over, Lutessa. What you do is wrong. You can't-"

"Put the helmet on."

One of the guards put the lead helmet back on her head, interrupting her words. Karen tried to resist being taken away, only getting the guards to drag her. Tess watched silently as she disappeared through the door, listening to the struggle through the hall. _The dead sing._ She felt the medallion warm in her chest again, not enough to hurt her but to remind her that _He_ was there. The woman pulled her chair to the left, to the small table where the record player was, an object so strange that it could well be from another world. _If you can bear the songs of the dead, it means that you understand the Truth. In the True world there is no hope, only survival._ Tess switched on the record player again, allowing Mozart's Requiem to go into her ears and relieve her headache. "Powergirl can't use her x-rays on herself with the Kryptonite, I hope the scar isn't visible. And tell your horror movie monster to send us the package before he takes the child."

 _'Done,'_ Jason answered in her ear. _'I'm checking on your favorite guest. She's not fun without her sarcastic and challenging comments. Maybe if I show her her friend's head...'_

"I trust you have the Kryptonite sword ready," said Tess before pulling out the receiver from her ear, throwing it on the table angrily.

 _Whatever it takes._

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **11:51 PM**

The Kryptonian opened the door of her room, gently pushing away the cats that followed her everywhere. "Go away," said Kara with exhaustion. "C'mon. Shu, shu!"

Kara could not remember ever being more stressed in her life, and worst of all, worse than the impotence of not being able to recover her sister, was the feeling of not advancing in the search for Veritas. _We can't continue like this._ Alex's last words were to give her courage, to encourage her to find the others. To remind her that she could not surrender. That the world, her friends, Lena, all needed Supergirl. _But I need Alex._ A small sob escaped her lips, sadness mixed with anger. _I'm going to destroy Lutessa, Teague, everyone. I will-_

She felt Lena's hand on her shoulder. Lifting her gaze, Kara found herself in front of her serious face, almost calm. "We need a bath."

"Yeah," said Kara, wiping a tear that had run down her cheek. "We need it."

Lena took her hand and pulled her into the bathroom, taking off her clothes along the way and unceremoniously throwing them to the floor, all except the medallion. Kara took off her blue sweater and black pants, as if they were suffocating her, needing to be naked almost desperately. Lena let her hair down, running her fingers through her scalp. Kara felt a shiver run down her back. "Turn on the water."

The brunette did so, turning her back to Kara and leaning slightly. Kara had the urgent need to kiss her back, touch it, bite it, dig her nails into that perfect skin and forget everything for a few minutes. _Stupid, I'd probably break her spine. I already hurt her the last time, it can't happen again._

They both sat in the tub, under the shower. Kara stared at her girlfriend's black hair, soaking wet, her beauty more intense than a mermaid's. Kara thought she could look at her for days. "We need to talk."

"I know," said Lena. "You just lied to Wayne. You don't know a word of Banen."

"I heard your heart and I knew there was something wrong. I said the first thing that came to me," she sighed. "You knew what it says in that text."

"It was Lena and the Great Monster." She leaned against the tub. "Wayne isn't stupid. All he needs is a prophecy with my name to confirm that I am the Gap." Her gaze turned sad. "Lillian spent all these years studying me like a mouse? Her words seem to indicate that. She was looking for a door somewhere." Their gazes met. "She thought I was some kind of key."

"It seems that she also thought that you'd have powers."

"Something that never happened." Lena rested her face on her hand. "I imagine her disappointment when she realized that I was just a normal human. More clever, but no super cosmic powers."

"Maybe she misinterpreted the 'confusing legends and prophecies' she mentions. And we can't say you're very normal now, Potsticker."

Lena smiled slightly, biting her lip and taking her hand. "How do you feel? For real."

Kara sighed. "I feel... we're over the worst." She rubbed Lena's hand in hers, looking at her long fingers. "Alex told me to forget about her. She asked me not to give up and look for the others, that she would be fine. I want to believe in my sister. But Lena, what if this was the last time I hear her voice? If I never hug her again and tell her that I love her? And if I lose her like I've lost my planet? Am I terribly selfish because I still want to go and get her?"

"There's no gram of selfishness in you, Kara Zor-El Danvers." Lena lifted her chin, looking into her eyes and stroking her cheek with her thumb. "I know you're scared, just like me, and that you're tired. But that conversation with Alex wasn't a goodbye. They know what happened, they managed to escape once and they'll do it again."

 _And they'll continue to flee if they manage to come back._ Kara touched Lena's soft lips with the tips of her fingers. "I think we have to talk about our options, because we can't continue like this."

Lena sighed deeply, nodding her head. "I hear you."

"Option number one: we tell them the truth," said Kara slowly, watching Lena's eyes widen slightly. "We tell them everything, that you're the Gap and that... she is on our side." She looked at the medallion. _Is she?_ "Because this way we aren't advancing."

"I know, but we can't do that." Lena squeezed her hand. "Kara, Kate is a good person and I'm sure she would want to do the right thing. But I know Wayne. Not Batman. Wayne. He always does what he thinks is right for the greater good, facing the consequences." She rubbed her fingers. "He wouldn't understand. He couldn't. He would think he can handle all by himself, and the first thing he would do is take away my medallion by force." She sighed. "He would think I'm a threat."

Kara rubbed her knees, feeling that the water was warmer.

Lena pursed her lips. "After all, it's what he thought of Artemis, that she was a threat. Wayne doesn't think any better of me."

 _And Kate? What would Kate do?_ Kara bit her lip. "Second option: we return to National City."

Lena looked at her with startled eyes.

"The DEO is still there, Lucy is there, Cat, your grandmother, people we can trust. I know the Bats can do things that no one else can, but what is the point of that advantage if we don't trust them? We could find Lutessa if we didn't spend half our energies on lying."

Lena bit her lip, shaking her head with bright eyes. "We would be putting them in danger. Veritas is looking for us too, keeping an eye on everything. You think they wouldn't notice if we come back home?" Kara stroked her wet hair, wishing she could remove that look of sadness from her eyes. "We can't."

Kara nodded slowly, rubbing her shoulders in small circles.

"Option three..." Her hands slid down her skin to her chest, where the medallion shone. "We got her out."

Lena's body hardened under her hands, as if her skin had turned to stone.

"I guess it's the only real choice we have," said Kara, touching her medallion. "We will never be truly free if we don't get rid of Veritas. All of them, our Earths and the others's. We need her to do that."

Her eyes softened, nodding slowly. "My grandmother warned me: sometimes there are no right decisions, only bad and less bad." Their gazes met. "We have to take the book and get out of here."

"Let me talk to her." Her heart began to run a marathon in her chest, breathing deeply. "I'll take care of the rest."

"You sure?"

"I am, Potsticker." Kara smiled at her, bending over to kiss her forehead. "Trust me, everything will be fine."

Lena looked at her with quiet eyes for a couple of seconds, taking her hands with all her strength. Kara watched as her beautiful girlfriend, the woman she loved, close her eyes and squeezed her lips into a thin line.

The change was almost immediate. Her body language disappeared, her heart began to beat at a slow and steady pace, her face softened into a blank page. When Lena opened her eyes, they were red as the color of blood, staring at their hands clasped in front of them. "You made the decision, Kara Zor-El."

"Yes," said Kara, not letting go of the Entity's hands. "Millions have died for Veritas, and millions more will continue dying if we don't stop them. It's as if all our life we had been slaves without knowing it."

"Slaves of the destiny that Mobius imposed on you."

Kara felt a sudden pang of pain in the head, so violent that she let go of Lena's hand, afraid of accidentally hurting her. Her vision clouded for less than a second.

The Entity kept looking down. "Hearing or thinking about His name is painful, is it not?"

"Veritas' members say it."

"They have years to practice. Eventually, they can say His name without feeling pain. He feels fascination for pain, as I feel it for love."

Kara smiled slightly, an almost involuntary grimace. "I don't know if you've heard, but a few minutes ago I invented a silly story to get Lena out of a jam. The Monitor and The Anti-Monitor. You said there isn't a word for what you and your brother are, maybe we can call you that." _I_ _know I don't have Cisco's imagination or Cat's wit, but it doesn't sound bad._ "Does it bother you if I call you Monitor?"

It almost seemed like she was confused. "Why do I need another name? Mine does not cause you pain."

"Because it helps me stop thinking of you as 'the Cosmic Entity that's possessing my girlfriend and could kill us just by wanting it'."

"I have told you before, I do not want to harm any being, only the gods and my brother." She moved in her place, laying Lena's hands awkwardly on her knees. "I'm... tired of being alone in the dark, feeling my Gaps being born just to feel them die seconds later. Lena is the only one who has lived so long."

"And she will die if we don't stop Veritas."

"Everyone dies, Lass," said the Monitor. "That is the beauty of life and change, the limit of time that makes everything more beautiful, the death of the old for the birth of the new, again and again, without ever stopping. With each birth there will be a new door, full of possibilities, but that beauty would be impossible without death. Life and death need each other." She looked at her cheek, slowly lifting Lena's hand and touching it with the index finger. "But no one should die before their time. And death should be natural, not a result of hatred, fear and ambition."

Kara smiled slightly, feeling the tickle on her cheek. "Why does Veritas want to keep you locked up if you're not evil?"

"Fear." Lena's index finger touched her nose. "The worst illness. You should know, you are also afraid of me. You can not help it, it is not your fault."

Kara looked away, frustrated to recognize that the Entity was right again. _Some people are scared of me even if I just want to help._ She took Lena's hand, pushing it away from her cheek, forcing herself to concentrate on her vital signs due her inability to look into her eyes. "I'll free you, Dax Novu, but we have to set up a couple of rules first."

"Speak."

"You will not use your powers against anyone other than Veritas." Lena's index finger began to rub the palm of her hand. "Maybe Bruce and Kate will try to stop us, but they are good and don't deserve to suffer any harm."

"I can erase their memories to make them forget everything about you and my Gap, as if you have never been here."

"You did it before?"

"I have not been as subtle as I should be." Her gaze fixed on Kara's chest, as if she could see her heart. "It is very easy to get carried away by Lena's emotions. Being connected to her for so long, I have begun to feel them as if they were also mine." She lifted Lena's hand to touch her neck awkwardly. "It is fascinating."

Kara moved her hand gently away. "Don't do that."

"Why?"

"We... beings, um, we take our living space very seriously. It feels bad that someone other than Lena touch me. Well, technically it's Lena's hand but, you understand, you're not her."

She raised her eyebrows imperceptibly, staring at the floor. "My apologies, it is that I had never been able to admire my work so closely." She put both Lena's hands on the edge of the tub. "The Kryptonians have almost a hundred thousand years more evolution than humans. You have different internal organs: three kidneys, four intestines, a bigger stomach and you use sixteen percent of your brain, five percent more than the most intelligent human. Why do you spend so much time restraining yourself?"

"To not hurt anyone," said Kara, looking away. "You can't hurt anyone, okay? If we get in trouble, we'll tell you what to do, but no one must get hurt. Especially Kate and Bruce."

"Good."

"Second condition, you can't erase my memory."

"I know, Lena already told me a while ago."

Kara swallowed. "I only have one more condition." She leaned back, leaning her back on the tub. "Lena will not suffer any harm now or after releasing you. You will always protect her, no matter what." _She's my brightest light, the only thing I have left._ "And you'll help us fix this whole mess."

She nodded. "That is all?"

"I've been betrayed some times, Monitor. It's not that easy to trust people anymore," said Kara, trying to look into those red eyes without looking away. "I need to trust you. Lena and I need to know we're doing the right thing."

"I do not defraud, Kara Zor-El. That is the creation of my brother."

Kara nodded slowly, clasping her hands under the warm water. "Now that we agree, I have some questions to ask you." Kara cleared her throat. "Why couldn't Raven feel anything in the medallion?"

"Magic has changed a lot over time, but it only works in Existence." She said looking at her neck. "I am out of Existence. Magic is useless with me, it can not track something that is not in the world."

Kara ran a hand through her wet hair. "Magic is inefficient, I understand." She leaned forward. "Being a Gap involves having powers? Lena has some kind of power? We found a journal of the former owner of the medallion, Lillian, the woman who... raised Lena. She believed that she would develop powers."

"And she did."

Kara half opened her mouth slightly. "Lena has powers? Which ones?"

"Her nature," she replied, trying awkwardly to brush a strand of black hair from Lena's face. "One of the reasons I made her stronger was for her to stop feeling jealous. Those kinds of feelings go against her nature, and are potentially harmful to her wellbeing."

Kara blinked. "I don't understand."

"My Gap is different from all other beings. She can not be reached by the influence of my brother. The gods can not harm her. Destiny does not affect her. And more importantly, her soul is pure, impervious to the evil of the world. That is why it was an aberration that she was jealous."

"You're saying that Lena's superpower... is her good heart? Her ability to do good?"

"Yes."

Kara smiled slightly. "Lillian must have been pretty frustrated." A sense of pride grew in her chest, she wondered if it was for her own merit or because of the Entity. "Okay, I just have one more question. What do I have to do to get you out?"

The Monitor looked at her chest, at her heart. "Open the Door."

* * *

 **Helena Wayne**

 **00:10 AM**

As much as her father had kept his word and told her a Supergirl story, Helena was in bed, unable to sleep. Usually the darkness of her bedroom was not a problem if she simply avoided thinking about it, but that night the darkness seemed different, darker, sinister. _Supergirl is in the house, nothing bad can happen. I have to stop being so dumb._ Helena reached for her bedside table, taking the cellphone her brother Jason had given her for her birthday. Covering her head with the blanket, Helena hugged her Supergirl doll and began to explore Twitter. * _realRonaldDump: Despite the constant negative press cofveve.*_ _Uh?_ The little girl pressed her lips together. _What is cofveve?_

 _ ***Nock Nock Nock***_ _"Helena?"_ A familiar voice came from the other side of the door.

Helena heard the door open slowly. She smiled, pulling her head out from under the sheets. "Hi."

"You shouldn't be up so late."

"Sorry," she said, leaving her cellphone. "Can't sleep."

"Mm, I see... When I was little and I had nightmares, I used to go out for a night walk. What do you say we go for a walk?"

Helena wrinkled her nose, hugging her doll. "There are monsters out there."

"Oh, of course not." The echo of the footsteps bounced around the room. Helena suddenly felt a strange smell, similar to old garbage. "You see, there are no monsters out there. You want to know why?"

"Why?"

A hand stroked her black hair. "Because the monsters are right here."

The hand covered her mouth, silencing the cry that wanted to come out too late.

* * *

 **The Woman Who hears the Song**

 **3:40 AM (Current Local Time in Scotland)**

Lutessa had always detested Granny Goodness, from the first moment she had laid eyes on her almost twenty five years ago. She could not bear her shark teeth, her manipulative attitude, her natural talent to make people suffer. _I know it perfectly well, this woman always finds a way to break anyone._ The old woman stood on the other side of the white room, next to the table where a white sheet covered the shape of a body. Goodness had a small jar of the serum in her hand, moving it gently. "It's amazing how technology evolves. I don't think I could have done it without the serum, not without making her useless."

"I know." _Too well_. "I would appreciate it if you stopped wasting our time and wake her up at once. We still have to take her to Gotham."

"As you say."

Lutessa saw the old woman reach for the white table by the side of the stretcher, where there was a wooden box with the well-known symbol of the well. Opening it, Granny Goodness drew out a gold medallion, shining like a snake's venom. Tess watched the woman remove the sheet from above the body, revealing gray skin full of scars that still retained some of the gold of the sun. _Whatever it takes to kill Lena._ Goodness lifted the head slightly, sliding the medallion down the neck, letting it fall between the bare breasts _. Whatever it takes to kill Lena. Whatever it takes. Whatever it takes._

Goodness sighed with a smile on her lips. "She is beautiful. I never believed that mixing science with Truth would work so well."

"Wake her before my patience is over."

Goodness shrugged, taking the serum again and preparing a syringe. She placed her right hand between the breasts of the body, above the medallion, her smile showing the shark's teeth that matched the body's scars. "We give this body to our Master, Owner and Lord of the Universes, so that He may make it a weapon to protect His Truth..."

The medallion began to glow in a blue light.

"...To erase from this Earth the Gaps that threaten order and peace..."

Lutessa bit her lip. _I should have killed her._

"...To maintain in her Prison the Watcher eager to escape and destroy us..."

 _Whatever it takes._

"...Use this body with sleeping soul, and make awaken something new and pure in your Truth, a new being, cleansed of all lies..."

Tess stopped listening to Goodness's voice, watching the body tremble as if electricity were running through its veins. The blue light of the medallion gave off heat as if it were a slow fire, without damaging the skin, but spreading a smell of coal that flooded the room. Goodness's voice stopped as the body stopped moving, her skin drained of all color, like an old rag doll.

Granny Goodness did not withdraw her hand from her chest. "It's over."

Tess moved a little closer to the stretcher, looking for some sign of consciousness in that indifferent face. "Wake up, we're waiting for you."

"You have to give her a name," said Goodness. "It's like you're her mother now."

Tess sighed softly, not wanting to show the slightest weakness in front of the person she hated so much. "Wake up." She held her still hand. "Wake up, Requiem."

Her eyes flew open. They were blue and beautiful like two sapphires.


	38. Nightmares and Hallucinations

**Commissioner James Gordon**

 **That morning**

The man slammed his fist on the table, only for the pleasure of venting his frustration in some way. "Four children," the commissioner grumbled. "Four children killed in two weeks and the guilty is still free?"

"We have the killer's DNA in all the crime scenes," Detective Montoya replied, controlling her own frustration in her voice. "The problem is that DNA doesn't match any criminal in our database. It has to be a beginner, but nevertheless, the murders seem made by an expert," the woman frowned. "It's as if he'd purposely left his DNA."

"It's nothing strange, Renée. This city is like a playground for lunatics, especially the dangerous ones. Just look at this." The old man threw down a newspaper from the previous day on the table. "That old witch of Vale even gave him a name, 'Everyman'. One more name to add to our list of celebrities."

"The press speaks, there's nothing new about that." Renée read the headline, uninterested. "My job is to find a suspect, Commissioner. I must continue my investigation, and for that I need authorization to check the cameras of-"

 ** _*Riiiiing* *Riiiiing*_** The sound of Gordon's cellphone interrupted the detective. The commissioner apologized, seeing that it was the new forensic's number. "Eugaet, here Gordon... Yes, an eleven years old boy, found in the alley five hours ago..." The tension in his shoulders eased, looking at the woman in front of him. "Detective Montoya and I will go right away, wait there." The man hung up.

Renée rose to her feet. "What happened?"

"The forensic found DNA that matches 'Everyman'." Gordon headed for the door, being followed by the detective, who had a thoughtful look on her face _. Maggie Sawyer had the same look._ Gordon sighed. _Sometimes I wish she hadn't left, she was the most experienced in freaks._

"So we finally have the bastard?" asked Montoya.

He denied with his head. "They're two bastards."

* * *

 _Lena realized that her old bedroom in Themiscyra had never changed, as if it had been the only place where her mothers had built a shelter against the passage of time. She was leaning against the wall, watching her one year old version playing on the floor with a yellow stuffed toy. The baby was biting the toy, only God knew what was going through her mind. Lena felt a pang of envy for her carefree life, though envying herself seemed a highly ridiculous act._

 _A faint sound of footsteps approaching was heard in the room. In front of Lena, baby Lena laughed clumsily, releasing the toy and crawling quickly to the window, where she hid behind the purple curtains. The lower half of her body was still perfectly visible, and her childish laughter did not do much to hide her._

 _The bedroom door opened, letting in their mothers, who had wet hair as if they had just stepped out of the shower._

 _"Lena, dinner time," said Diana, looking for her. Artemis smiled sideways, touching her shoulder and pointing toward the curtain, where the baby did her best to remain silent. Both Amazons looked at each other and drowned out a small laugh._

 _"Oohh, Artemis, Lena's gone!" said Diana exaggerating concern, opening the closet. "Lena, are you here? Sweetie?" the brunette leaned over to look under the bed. "Lena? Artemis, she must have been kidnapped by fairies! We have to go and rescue her!"_

 _The redhead crept sideways to the curtain, giggling slightly. "I don't think it's necessary, I bet the fairies will give her back in less than an hour, when they realize that the brat can't stop crying without her toys." She bent slowly. "But what's this behind the curtain? We have an intruder!"_

 _Quickly, Artemis opened the curtain and took the baby in her arms. "Diana, I captured a fairy! You, vile and disloyal evil creature, where is my daughter!? Speak or I won't have mercy!"_

 _"We should do something with her bad habit of hiding," said Diana taking the baby, kissing her black hair. "Someday she could really escape."_

 _"I know we have an escapist baby, Princess, but if I can find a prey miles away, I can find Lena wherever she goes." Artemis stroked the baby's small head, kissing her nose. "We'll have to work on your camouflage, Little Princess."_

* * *

 **Lena**

 **7:57 AM**

The feel of Kara's wet hair against her shoulder was the first thing Lena felt when she awoke. She let out a grunt of satisfaction, hiding her face in the neck of the Kryptonian. Kara kissed her temple, caressing her waist. Opening her eyes, Lena found Kara's blues, so beautiful and big that they could only belong to a creature fallen from the sky. Lena let herself enjoy the hopeful and rewarding feeling of love, before raising her hand and putting a strand of blond hair behind her ear, tangling her fingers in her hairline. "What time is it?"

"Almost eight," said Kara, putting her hand on her neck, over the silver chain of the medallion. "Where have you been?"

"Themiscyra," whispered Lena, smiling slightly. "I wasn't very good at playing hide and seek." Kara smiled slightly, her eyes peaceful. Lena wondered what she was thinking. "Should we bathe?"

"It's not necessary," whispered Kara, then whispering. "I told you there are no secret cameras anywhere."

"I can't get rid of the feeling of being watched," whispered Lena.

"There are no cameras, I swear," replied the blonde, leaning her face in her hand. "I've been awake for a few hours, thinking about the Monitor."

Lena frowned slightly. "Monitor?"

"I think it's more appropriate than The Watcher," said Kara, her index finger tracing circles around Lena's collarbone, touching the medallion. "Because, after all, She does more than just watch. She intervenes too."

"If She doesn't mind..."

"I think She doesn't care." Kara laid her head back on the pillow, sunlight streaming through the window and lighting her golden hair. Lena thought that it was impossible for any goddess to be more beautiful. "We've talked, made a deal. We'll do it." Their eyes met. "We'll get her out."

"...How does it make you feel?"

Kara sighed. "It's our best choice, and no one can be worse than Her brother."

 _The Goddess of the Multiverse_. Lena shook her head. _No, not a Goddess. A Monitor._ "What should we do?"

"Well, to put it in simple words, the existential plane where She's trapped has a 'lock'." Kara's lips tightened. "She told me that along the Multiverse there are special 'places', where you can access the 'lock'. There's one on our dimension."

"The Chaos Door."

"Yes," her alien goddess looked away, her face reflective. "Only that we have to find it. Nobody knows where it is."

"Lillian was looking for it." _Did she want to open the door, too?_ "Maybe she wanted to find a way to use the Monitor for her own benefit."

"Sounds like Lillian," said Kara. "She wrote ' _the list of possible locations could be reduced to four places, A1, A2, B1 and T1_ '. I guess we have to... find out what those places are and start looking." Suddenly, her eyes widened slightly. "Lillian wrote that maybe you could feel where it is."

Lena's lips parted. "I don't know. She also wrote that I'd have powers, and I have none."

"Your superpower has always been to be Lena, the most beautiful person both on the inside and outside." Kara kissed her hand, smiling lightly. "We can do it, I know."

"I believe you," answered Lena, unable to resist the temptation to bow her head and kiss her gently. "We just have to take the book, then we can decide where to go, although perhaps we should take our time to make sure that neither Kate nor Wayne find anything that they can associate with us. I think I can access the-"

 _'Meow!'_

Lena was startled when a small black cat jumped on the bed, landing on Kara's chest. The Kryptonian looked at the animal in astonishment, then stroking it behind the ear. "How did you come in, mhm? Are you a ninja cat?"

"Maybe Batman trains them or something," said Lena taking off the sheets, looking around to get her clothes. "It wouldn't be the craziest thing. He has already trained little children-"

"Lena."

"Why not cats too?"

"Lena." Kara sat up in bed, the cat in her hands, staring at it with startled eyes. "Something's not right with this cat."

Before Lena's confused look, Kara brought the face of the animal near to her own face, looking into its eyes intently. The brunette knew from her dilated pupils that her girlfriend was using her x-ray vision, inspecting the whole small body of the cat. Kara let out a gasp of astonishment, her face darkening in a mixture of anger and disbelief. "Rao's shit."

Lena felt a shiver run down her spine. "Kara, what's up?"

"You were right," the blonde growled, getting out of bed, not letting go of the cat, who began to squirm. "There are cameras and microphones inside the cat."

* * *

 **Batwoman**

 **8:10 PM**

An inner voice told Kate that she should take a rest to sleep, but preferred to drown that voice with a fifth cup of coffee _. This won't be my last night in front of the computer_. Until then, the doctors' deaths had looked like mere accidents, impossible to track. _Chi Park fell down the stairs and broke her neck. Robert Chase died from cancer. Lisa Cuddy had syphilis. A racist policeman killed Eric Foreman. Remy Hadley sneezed, coughed and farted at the same time and her heart exploded._ Kate knew that those deaths were related, but she could not help but astonish at how different they were. _Veritas knows how to hide its tracks. How the hell did they cause diseases and accidents like that?_ It was difficult, but not impossible. _Nothing is impossible for these people._ Kate sighed, closing Chi Park's file and opening Hugh Laurie's.

Ten minutes later, the red-haired woman frowned, checking the photographs of the corpse. "The body was found three months later. His face is unrecognizable."

At her side, Bruce did not take his eyes off the book. "The DNA test?"

"It matches, of course."

"How did Laurie die?"

"His private yacht sank on the high seas, but the detail of his face seems very strange to me, as if I had seen it somewhere before." Kate leaned forward, resting her chin on her left hand. _Where have I seen this before? Think, think._ Her eyes widened slightly. "It's the same way Lillian faked Lena's death. Drowning, disfigured corpse."

Batwoman searched for a photograph of the victim, entering it into her national database. The computer took ten seconds to complete its search, without results.

"It's been thirty years, if the man is alive, his face may have changed," said Bruce, looking at her with interest.

Kate nodded. "I'll seek him by his eyes. They're like second fingerprints, but impossible to erase."

Batwoman widened the image into the eyes of the victim, deep blue as a clear sky. She limited the search to only the eyes. Millions of eye images sped past the computer, all captured by millions of cameras in different parts of the country. Kate began to grow impatient when she saw the computer was taking a very long time. _I should look outside the country too._ The search was almost over and there were still no results. When Kate's brain began to look for other possibilities, the computer suddenly stopped, a picture a pair of blue eyes on an aged face filling the whole screen. Batwoman got up slowly from the chair.

"He's alive." Kate could not look away, her eyes descending to read the information. At last Bruce seemed to be giving her his full attention. "His name is Gregory House now. He's a doctor at Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital, Metropolis."

Bruce kept silent, pursing his lips and reading the information. "Did he fake his own death?"

"Or escaped," said Kate, reaching for a sixth cup of coffee. "You should go and ask him in person. You're more familiar with Metropolis and I need to..."

 ** _*Pamp*_** Kate turned around at the sound of the door opening. She narrowed her eyes immediately. In front of her, Kara Danvers and Lena Luthor stood at the door, their eyes fixed in them and their arms _(what the hell?)_ full of cats. Her cousin let out an imperceptible sigh. The felines writhed in the arms of both women, clawing mercilessly, useless action on Kara, and Lena did not seem to care. Both women had their lips pressed into a thin line. Kate had a bad feeling.

"And these are only the ones we could catch," said Kara, looking at Bruce, wrinkling her mouth. "Would you like to explain why there are cameras on your pets' heads, Mr. Wayne?"

Bruce immediately put on his Batman's face, the one that was able to freeze the fire. "Surveillance" he said in an icy voice.

Lena Luthor released the cats in her arms, who ran into the darkness. "To keep an eye on you both, you mean. I give you credit for the idea. Kara would never have thought to look for cameras inside the cats. She's too good to imagine that someone could be that crazy."

 _What the hell?_ Kate looked at her cousin, surprised and furious. "You put cameras inside your cats!?"

"It was just a precaution."

"Against us," added Lena, her eyes much older than usual. "Tell me, Mr. Wayne, what did you expect to find? Some kind of proof of... what?"

Instead of looking at Lena, Bruce looked at Kara. "I don't think you have any bad intentions, Miss Danvers," said Bruce. Kate could not help but notice that Lena clenched her teeth. "But since you arrived you haven't stopped lying. And I have to be sure you don't hide something dangerous."

Lena stepped forward, frowning. "At least you're honest. All right, Mr. Wayne, let's get this over with. You suspect me, don't you?"

Bruce studied her from top to bottom. "Do I have any reason not to? Your lies don't give you credibility."

"And what are my lies, if I may know?"

 _Dammit_ , Batwoman thought, watching the scene.

"The first day you said your medallion is magic. It's impossible for it to be magical, Raven said she couldn't feel magic in it," said Batman, folding his arms.

"Veritas's magic is unique."

"But an expert sorceress like Raven should be able to feel something, at least. That calls into question your story about how you survived the explosion."

"You accuse me of letting my employees die?" she said in a quietly furious voice.

"I accuse you of lying, and of asking Miss Danvers to lie for you," he answered coldly. "Kryptonians can learn a full language in a week, but not perfectly. I've known Clark for more than ten years;" his eyes became hard. "Tell me, Miss Danvers, what did that text really say that prompted you to lie?"

Kara sighed, not looking away. "Yes it was an old legend, but I changed the names of the characters. The real title is 'Lena and the Great Monster'," said the Kryptonian, pursing her lips, pretending she was not tense. "I admit that I lied about that, Mr. Wayne, I didn't want you to think Lena was involved, because of course she's not. It only happens that her name was taken from an old Amazon legend."

"You lie again," her cousin said almost resignedly. "I see it in your eyes. Do you let your partner lie for you, Ms Luthor? That doesn't speak very well of you."

"Watch out," the brunette answered in a low voice.

"Then prove me wrong," he said defiantly. "Show me that I'm wrong. Come on, I want you to do it. Tell me the truth. Show me you're like Diana, like the woman who loved you more than her own life, and not like Lillian Luthor." Lena's eyes flashed with anger. "Tell me the truth, Lena."

The brunette took some time to breathe deeply. "I don't know, Mr. Wayne." She took a step forward. "You're the 'best detective in the world'. Haven't you thought that if you haven't found anything, it's because you're not searching correctly?"

"Miss Luthor, this book mentions your name, your kidnapping, and it belonged to your mother. Are you really going to pretend you don't know anything?"

Lena's eyes lit up in cold fury. "Lillian. is not. my mother. That woman kidnapped, manipulated and used me for thirty years. She did not even bother pretending to care about me. She took my family away from me. Do you think I would prefer her over them? Do you think I wouldn't do anything to get them back? Well you're damn wrong, Batman."

Kara stepped forward, worried. "Lena..."

"I'm not a Luthor by choice, Wayne," replied the dark-haired woman. "That woman you call my mother made me one. And if you stopped wasting your time hunting for ghosts, maybe we would have already found them." Lena took a deep breath, her muscles relaxing and her gaze unflinching. "We appreciate your hospitality and your help, Mr. Wayne, but Kara and I will continue on our own from now on."

"Lena, no," said Kate reacting, walking forward. Kara also advanced, taking her girlfriend by the arm and looking into her eyes, in that silent way in which both always communicated. "My cousin is an idiot, I know. But if you leave, you'd become a very easy target to find and would be at a disadvantage."

Kara shook her head. "Sorry, Kate, we can't stay."

"We don't trust your cousin and he doesn't trust me," Lena said, her face slightly flushed. "And I know you don't trust me either."

"Yes I thought you were hiding something, but I didn't know about the cameras," said Kate honestly. "I know you're not a bad person. You're a friend of Maggie's," she responded as if that were indisputable proof. "We need to help each other, no mistrust. I know how terrorists think, and these people don't care how many deaths they cause to reach you," said Kate, looking at both women. "Stay to help us save lives."

"Following your logic, it's best that we leave," said Lena softly. "The further away we are from people, the better."

"That's not-..."

"Let them go, Kate," said Bruce, his posture defensive and his voice hard. "They're not a couple of little girls, they're adults. And we can't keep them here against their will."

 _This is the last time I work with you, Bruce, fuck._

Lena held out her hand, the seriousness of her face making her look like a fifty years old woman. "Give me the book, Mr. Wayne. We'll need it."

For a moment they both looked at each other in silence, before Bruce turned around, took the book, and handed it to the dark haired woman. "I know you won't believe me, but nothing has been personal."

Lena took the book. "You're right, I don't believe you."

"Would you have acted differently if you were in my place?" asked Bruce. "You and I both know you wouldn't," his gaze went to the Kryptonian. "Do you want me to tell your cousin about you leaving, Kara? You won't be able to contact him on your own."

Kara's eyes flashed for a second, pressing her lips together and opening them again to respond. But before uttering a word, the door opened again, letting in an agitated Selina. Her eyes were unfocused, frozen with fear and panic. "Bruce!". The scream bounced off the walls, causing dozens of bats to scream agonizingly. Selina ran toward them, a blue and red object in her right hand. _"BRUCE!"_

The four people stared at her. "Selina, what-?"

"Helena's gone!"

Batman's face disfigured in a horrible grimace. Kara gasped as if she had been kicked in the stomach. Lena looked at her in disbelief. And Kate felt fear as soon as she recognized the object in Catwoman's hands.

"This was in her room," she said, raising her trembling hand to give her husband the Supergirl's doll. "There's a note on the cloak, it says 'you decide who dies: your daughter or Lena Luthor'. The doll is full of dirt."

"I-It's not dirt," said the Kryptonian taking a step forward.

Kate knew it without needing a super smell. The doll was stained with blood.

* * *

 **Maggie Sawyer**

 **?:?**

A brief wind had risen half an hour ago, creating little clouds of gray sand as the four of them advanced through the dark desert. A strange sensation kept growing in Maggie's chest, an omen that kept her alert, tense like a cat. The disembodied figure of Alura walking twenty yards ahead looked like a mirage, a trap of death itself. ' _There is not much left,'_ said Alura. ' _The darkness will diminish as we get closer.'_

Five minutes passed and Maggie noticed that the infinity above them lit up lightly, from an absolute black to a thick purple. As everything around them began to brighten, she felt the omen grow unremittingly in her chest, like a snowball falling down a hill. _What are you hiding, Alura?_ She pursed her lips. _What are you doing here? What do you want?_

Maggie sighed, turning her head a little. To her surprise Alex and Diana were staring at her, their skins damp and covered with sand and dried blood. Alex took her hand, entwining her dirty fingers with hers. "How are you?"

"Okay," replied Maggie quickly, looking again at the ghost dressed in black. "But my instinct doesn't stop shouting me that something bad is happening."

Diana nodded. "Mine has done the same thing since we met Alura." The Amazon pressed her lips together in a thin line. "I think it's pretty obvious that she's not a normal ghost. And I'm afraid her actions don't speak very well of her."

"Kara would suffer a lot if she were here." Alex looked away, her face hardened, sighing with sadness. "How the hell am I going to tell her that her dead mother is the biggest bitch in the Underworld?"

"Well, we'll have to get out of here first, Alex," whispered Diana, running a hand through her new short hair. "Maggie."

"Yes?"

"Back there, when you attacked her..." She bit the inside of her cheek. "You could touch her, maybe it has something to do with your powers."

Maggie swallowed, ignoring her fatigue. "That means I'm the only one who can stop her if she tries to hurt us."

"We won't let her, I refuse to," said Alex firmly. "There has to be a way to protect us against her. How do you get rid of a ghost?"

Diana leaned closer to Alex. "Finding out what's stopping it from leaving."

Alex nodded. "I think that would be Kara. Maybe that's why she refuses to talk about her."

"Look," said Maggie.

In the distance, blurred in a bright yellow mist, stood a large and imposing obsidian mountain. Maggie looked up to search the top, but the mountain lost itself in infinity, its form disappearing as she looked higher. Strange rocky shapes protruded on its boulders, resembling evil monsters emerging from her deepest nightmares. Maggie swore she could see eyes in those shapes, red orbs, bright as sapphires, staring at her as if they had been waiting for her. _'Come to us,'_ said those eyes. _'Come to us and we will take away all the pain, all the tiredness. We will rid you of all your nightmares and hallucinations.'_

The three of them advanced in silence, their eyes on Alura as if watching a dangerous beast. Eventually the four arrived at the foot of the mountain. Maggie wiped the sweat from her forehead, her tired body vibrating with the desire to breathe fresh air and watch the sunlight. But her mind kept warning her to keep her eyes open. She raised her eyebrows at what she found on the rocky wall. Two small doors were there. The first was of white wood, inlaid with gold, silver and amethyst. The doorknob was a ruby as big as her clenched fist. _It's beautiful_ , thought the detective dazzled by such beauty. Instead, the second door was made of old moldy wood, with an unpleasant smell of dampness and rottenness. Maggie looked at it curiously.

 _'We are here,'_ said Alura, standing between the two doors. ' _You must enter through the first door. It will lead you back to the surface.'_

Maggie repeated her words to her girlfriend. Alex watched the white door in silence, stepping forward and touching the gold encrusted in the wood. Diana looked at Alura, studying her. "Is there something you want us to tell your daughter?"

She shook her head. ' _would rather if she not know I am here.'_

Diana nodded, not entirely able to hide her dislike. The brunette moved toward the door. Alex laid a hand on the ruby doorknob. It was then that a wave of panic woke in Maggie's chest.

"Alex, wait."

Her girlfriend paused, turning her head to look at her as did Diana.

Maggie turned to Alura. "What's behind the other door?"

The ghost pressed her lips together, her eyes darkening slightly. _'The other door leads to great danger. You must not open it.'_

Maggie exchanged a deep look with Diana, her friend's face harder and more serious than that of an angry goddess. Alex looked at them, waiting in an alert silence, her hand resting on the hilt of her sword.

"Is it true?" asked Maggie.

 _'Do you doubt my word?'_

"Should we? I guess it won't bother you if we check first." She looked at Diana. "Do you think it's possible to open the white door just a little, to see what's on the other side?"

 _'You cannot do that.'_

Diana nodded, putting her right hand on the doorknob. Alex stepped back slightly, taking her sword out, still staring at the door. Maggie noticed that the ghost's features changed almost imperceptibly, her cheekbones sharpened, her eyes narrowing. But there was no annoyance in those eyes, but a tiny pinch of _(satisfaction?). Oh my-_

"DIANA, NO!"

 ** _*BAM*_** As soon as Diana opened slightly the door, a huge force struck the wood from the other side, knocking her in the face. Maggie's eyes widened in horror as a huge jaw ( _NO!_ ) closed on the edge of her friend's tunic, pulling her into the door.

"Diana!"

She fell at the swift, strong attack of those giant teeth. Alex lunged forward, catching her hand in time, but the fierce strength of the teeth finally dragged her too, a second before Maggie could throw herself to help them.

"Alex!" Maggie almost fell through the door as well, managing to grasp the doorknob at the last moment. On the other side it was barely visible a distant stone floor. It was huge, deep pit as dark as a wolf mouth. Maggie could see Alex and Diana's diffused shadows on the floor, rising quickly. "Alex! Diana!"

 _"We're fine!"_ replied her girlfriend.

Beside her, Diana seemed to be watching everything around her _. "Damn, not again."_

 _"What do you mean? What the hell was that? "_ asked Alex, her voice a mixture of fury and frustration.

A guttural growl bounced off the walls of the pit, followed by an infernal canine howl. Alex and Diana stood back to back, watching around them with their hardened bodies. Maggie could hear the rage on Diana's voice. _"There's a monster that used to prowl around the Underworld when I was little. A giant hound with three heads. His name's-"_

 _"Cerberus?"_

 _"Yes, that one."_

 _"I hate this place."_

 ** _'RAAAAAAAWWWRRR'_** From the depths of darkness was heard a fierce and terrifying howl like the sound of bones breaking. Like a ferocious nightmare, the beast emerged from the shadows. Maggie first saw his snouts, his three powerful jaws, each one with two rows of large, sharp teeth as swords. Leaning a bit closer were visible his six ice-blue eyes without pupils or eyelids. The middle head was a little larger than the other two, and its ears were as frayed as old rags. Maggie's mouth opened wide. _Oh no. No no no no n-_

 _*Princk*_

Maggie heard the click behind her a second before it was too late. The detective moved in time, avoiding the blow of the hammer, stepping back in the sand and away from the door. For a moment her eyes met those of the ghost, expressionless, dead. Then Alura raised her hammer again, pouncing on her. "What did you do!?" yelled Maggie furiously. A chill ran down her back as Cerberus roared fiercely again. She moved in time to dodge another hammer attack, then another, the ghost's eyes as black as the night. "Alex! Diana! Hold on, I'll get you out!"

 _'You will not,'_ said the ghost. ' _The murderer's life is not yours to save it, Seer.'_

Her hammer brushed her cheek, almost shattering her head. _DAMMIT!_ Before the ghost attacked again, Maggie tried to hit the hand that held the weapon, but instead hit her shoulder. Her surprise was great when she realized that she felt cold and hard as an iceberg. Alura stepped back and Maggie saw her opportunity. When the hammer descended again, her hands caught the weapon by the hilt, pressing her lips to the painful cold of the contact.

"What did you do!?" yelled Maggie, pulling at the hammer. "She's your daughter's sister! Stop this, Alura!"

 _'To be a Seer, you see very little, young human.'_ With a strong pull, Alura regained control of her hammer. But her movements were suddenly slower, as if she had lost strength. ' _t's for Kara's sake. I will not let her be condemned to the darkness. Not again.'_

The hammer tried to hit her chest. Maggie moved to the right and then propelled herself forward, circling the ghost with one arm and trying to take her hammer. Alura tried to pull her off, squeezing her grip and causing them both to fall into the **_(*A red sun* *A sky turning gray* *An S shining in a golden building*_** ) sand. Maggie began to feel a strong head ache. "What's this!?"

 _'I told you,'_ replied Alura weakly, trying unsuccessfully to get up. ' _You should never touch a ghost.'_

 ** _(*A blue-eyed girl looking at her with adoration*_** ) Maggie blinked quickly, trying not to get caught by the images in her mind. Alura looked too weak, as if something was consuming her. _The hammer._ But the images of her memory kept passing before her eyes like fragments of an old movie. The ghost's weak eyes locked on her, accusing, sore. It was the last thing Maggie saw before her mind was transported to another planet, almost forty years ago.

* * *

 _The light around Maggie was orange, as if the world were frozen in an eternal sunset. Maggie could not help marveling at the splendor of the building around her, illuminated to its last corner, built with unknown materials light-blue colored. It looked like a huge crystal castle. **This is Krypton** , she thought, noticing the huge windows through which a red sun could be seen. **Kara's home almost forty years ago. This seems some kind of Church. Where-? There.**_

 _Alura stood next to another woman almost at the end of the hallway, in front of a huge altar that looked like a majestic red star. Maggie rushed forward, trying to catch every detail around her. As she approached them, she realized that both women were an exact reflection of the other, deep blue eyes and brown hair as the purest honey. The woman on the left, however, had a white lock framing her face. **This must be Astra** , Maggie thought eagerly. **I need to get out of here. Alex and Diana need me, I've to wake up...**_

 _Alura smiled with bright eyes, completely relaxed and happy. It was hard for Maggie to relate that happy face to that of the ghost. "Thank you for coming here, Astra," she said to her sister in a strange language. However, Maggie understood every word, as if another whispering voice translated her words into her ear._

 _"I am sorry I could not come sooner, but you cannot imagine how much trouble I'm having with the daxamites. Queen Rhea is a formidable strategist," replied Astra, sighing. Her eyes fixed on the altar. "Why are we in the Temple of Rao?"_

 _"There is hardly anyone in this Temple at this hour of the morning."_

 _Astra frowned. "Is everything alright, Alura? Is there a problem? "_

 _"On the contrary, I want to give you good news." She took a breath. "Zor-El and I have decided it is time to have a child."_

 _The other Kryptonian's eyes opened slightly, before a smile of pure happiness spread across her face, making her look younger. She stroked her sister's hands affectionately. "Good Rao, Alura, you have left me speechless. I cannot believe it..." She sighed. "Am I going to be aunt? It is not possible for us to be so old..."_

 _"I know, I feel the same." She squeezed her forearms with emotion. "We have all the details decided: it will be a girl. Her hair will be blond like Zor-El's, and her eyes blue like ours. Our nose, his chin, Father's ears, Mother's cheeks... "_

 _"Mother's cheeks? They are too big, Alura."_

 _"They are not too big," she said, putting her hands on her hips. "A baby with those cheeks can only be a beauty."_

 _"Well, it is your daughter." Astra shrugged. "But if she ever complains about her cheeks, I will be the first to say 'I told you'."_

 _Alura laughed slightly, then her smile fell a little. "Mother is also happy, you know? I was hoping that you could make peace with the news."_

 _Astra pursed her lips. "You know it is not so simple... Since Father died nothing is simple between us. You know that to her I am just an error. "_

 _"You are not a mistake," said Alura seriously, taking her hands. "You are the other half of my soul. And Mother will have to be willing to be cordial for the sake of the child. "_

 _"Why should she be? It is not like she is going to see me more often anyway."_

 _Alura smiled mischievously._

 _"Alura, what are you hiding?"_

 _"I have appointed you her legal guardian."_

 _"What?" Her face lost all color. "You should not have."_

 _"I know you are very busy lately, but..."_

 _"You really should not have." She squeezed her shoulders. "Do you realize that The House of El can take it as a scorn? Your daughter is not a Ze, she is an El. Tradition says that Jor-El should be her guardian."_

 _"And yet you are the best choice."_

 _"Alura, this is serious. How did your husband agree?"_

 _"I have not told him yet," she replied. "But you know what Zor-El is like. I can convince him that it is the right decision. Because if anything happens to him and me, you are the only one who could love my daughter as if she were yours too." Her sister caressed her hair affectionately. "There is no one I trust more."_

 _Astra smiled slightly resignedly, sighing as she hugged her sister. "Can I teach her to use a weapon?"_

 _"Not until she is of age."_

 _"Fair enough," she said without breaking the embrace. "Have you thought of a name? Knowing you, you have a list with all possible options."_

 _"Actually, there are only two," said Alura separating from her. "I cannot decide between 'Astra Zor-El'..."_

 _"Good Rao, no."_

 _"... And 'Kara Zor-El'," Alura completed. "For that old legend of the sun Goddess, creator of life and protector of love. What do you think?"_

 _Maggie saw the fearsome General biting her lip playfully. "Kara is a beautiful name."_

 ** _But it has never been about Kara,_** _Maggie thought, her eyes on the twins._ ** _Oh my God, I have to save Alex._**

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El Danvers**

 **8:23 AM**

Running faster than sound through the dark streets of Gotham, Kara wondered if Barry had been faster, smarter, more capable of finding a six-year-old girl kidnapped by murderous psychopaths. Kara let all her senses unfold as she ran down the main street, her audition, smell and vision completely alert. _Trash. Cars. Women shouting. Men talking on the phone. Rats. Contamination. Cockroaches eating. Cigarette smoke at twenty meters. A couple arguing on the other side of town._ But no trace of Helena Wayne. She was almost certain that her teeth would break from clenching them.

Running faster to make sure no one saw her, Kara turned to Wayne Manor, opening the front door, up the stairs, turning in the hallway to Bruce's office, down the open bookcase door, entering the Batcave and stopping in front of the computers.

Her brain was going too fast, causing everything to go around in a slow motion for a moment. Bruce, dressed as Batman, was typing furiously on the computer, with his worried wife at his side. Kate was preparing her two pistols and her belt, a furious expression on the visible part of her face. Lena was on the other computer, trying to access the cats's security videos to see how they had taken Helena. Their eyes met for less than a second. There was concern in those eyes, and deep down, a huge amount of guilt.

The things around her regained their normal speed. "I can't find her."

Lena did not take her eyes off the computer. "Helena was in her bed at midnight, Bruce read her a story and then the cat left the room. There are no more recordings until 5 in the morning, another cat got into her room and the bed was empty."

"She must be somewhere made of lead," said Batman. "The signal places her somewhere outside the city, if only I could-..."

"What signal?" asked Kara.

"Helena has a tracker in a tooth." Batman replied coolly.

Kate turned away, frowning. "Did you put a tracker on your daughter?"

Selina did not take her eyes off the screen. "Which was a good idea given our current situation."

"I found her," said Batman, getting up abruptly from the chair.

Selina let out a gasp. "No..."

"What?" asked Kara nervously.

"Arkham." Bruce wasted no time, heading for the Batmobile without looking at anyone. "Helena must be somewhere made of lead."

"C'mon," said Batwoman, approaching her cousin and heading for the vehicle.

"I'm going too," said Kara following the bats. Batman turned to answer, but Kara interrupted him. "Let me help you, Mr. Wayne, I've deal with Veritas before and they won't hesitate to hurt Helena. Let me help you save your daughter, you can't do this alone."

Batman grunted slightly. Kara interpreted it as an affirmative signal before climbing into the backseat of the Batmobile. She could not help but feel slightly frustrated. _They're waiting for me to go flying._ Her eyes met Lena's greens, worried and guilty. The Kryptonian would have wished to be able to smile to reassure her, but her girlfriend was too clever for an empty consolation. Kara closed the car door.

The car started at full speed, causing the figures of Lena and Selina to lose quickly in the darkness.

* * *

 **Lena Luthor**

 **8:28 AM**

Her fingernails sank deep into the palm of her hand, wounding her skin, a pain similar to the sting of an ant. _Arkham is hell on Earth_. On the screen, a map of the asylum showed its labyrinthine structure worthy of a nightmare. Lena took a deep breath, an unpleasant heat trapped in her cheeks and neck, as if she were suddenly suffering the worst cold of her life. A small red dot showed the Batmobile approaching the place. And in the center of the infamous building, like a treasure at the end of a labyrinth, a blue dot represented the aproximed place where Helena Wayne was.

The ghostly light of the computer painted Selina's face blue. "Helena's in the heart of Arkham. At this hour the staff haven't yet entered, you just have to deal with the security guards."

 _'Get it,'_ Kate's voice answered. _'We'll bring her home, Selina.'_

"Kara," said Lena.

 _'Lena?_ ' her voice answered on the computer.

"You're still a hero, Kara," whispered Lena, clenching her fist. "Don't let anyone convince you otherwise."

 _'I know,'_ her voice answered softly. _'Thank you.'_

 _Bring her home, Kara._

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El Danvers**

 **8:28 AM**

The building was so horrible on the outside as it surely was inside, gray and dead even though the sun was already high in the sky. _But the sun never seems to shine in this city._ Kara had never been unlucky enough to be in Arkham before. But she was a journalist, she knew the stories of madness, blood, and death that were permanently present in The Cursed Asylum of Gotham. _Why don't they demolish this place and send the crazies to another better place?_ It was as if no one could see the endless vicious circle. _The crazies escape, kill, then return and everything starts again._

The three of them passed the main entrance after knocking the security guards unconscious. Kara and the two Bats infiltrated the asylum, grim as if the walls themselves presaged the presence of evil. Kate cocked her head, indicating the corridor on the right. The three advanced silently, Kara using her vision and ears to know where were all the guards. _I can't see or hear Helena. Those cowards must be somewhere with lead._ The Bats became one with the shadows as they advanced, like deadly disembodied ghosts. In the distance, the sound of the madmen in their cells reverberated in her ears like the buzz of countless mosquitoes.

One of the humming became familiar.

"It's him," whispered Kara to Batwoman. "The man who attacked us in the Fortress, Slade Wilson."

"There's Helena's signal," answered Kate. "Can you...?"

"I can't see or hear her."

Kara focused exclusively on the sound of that heart, her own veins burning with anger. _I got you, bastard._ Ten seconds later, the three entered abruptly into the west hall, Batwoman kicking the door.

Innumerable eyes stared at her from behind the glass walls on either side of them. Kara only had a second before recognizing some famous faces ( _Two Faces, The Scarecrow, Poison Ivy_ ) and some she could not identify ( _a huge white zombie, a crocodile man_ ) before her attention was directed to the man standing at seven meters from them. "You." The man wore a black and orange helmet, multiple knives and pistols in his black belt. "You can't hide from me, Slade Wilson."

"Who says I'm trying to hide?" replied the man without moving. "We've been waiting all morning."

"Last chance," Batman growled furiously. "Give me Helena Wayne, or I'll break every bone in your body."

In the cells, the crazies shouted insults and threats to the man who had put them there. Kara heard a noise buzzing through the air ( _arrow!_ ), heading to Batman's head. In less than a second, Kara jumped up and caught it in the air. _Where the hell-?_ To her surprise, a second person jumped from the roof rafters, landing next to Slade. Kara's eyes widened in astonishment. The person wore a green helmet, the inside of which should contain lead, because the Kryptonian could not see its face. Neither listen to its breathing nor hear a heartbeat. _What's this?_ The figure wore a bright green sword, Kara could hear her own gasp as she recognized the Kryptonite. _It's impossible. Kal destroyed it all._

"You see, there's only one way you can win, Batman. We're all tired of wasting time, just give us Lena Luthor and you'll get the girl back," said Slade. "She misses her father so much..."

Batman's only response was to throw him a batarang, both he and Kate running forward to attack him. Kara tried to imitate them, but the figure in the green helmet went in her way, raising the Kryptonite's sword and attacking her by the left. Kara dodged the blow in time, moving to the right. _Dammit!_ The Kryptonian tried to use her speed to take the sword off her opponent, but as fast as she moved, the person in the green helmet always dodged her movements, as if it knew what she was going to do. The Kryptonite's sword passed dangerously close to her neck, causing Kara to retreat. _Attack, damn it!_ Clenching her fists, Kara dodged another blow, hurling a quick punch at the person's green helmet, which did not break. _What? Fuck!_ The tip of the sword brushed her cheek, causing the Kryptonian to retreat. Her opponent's elbow headed to her nose, but Kara caught it in time, hurling it quickly into the transparent wall of one of the cells. Inside the cell, Poison Ivy jumped and backed away. The glass cracked by the force of the impact.

"Surrender!" yelled Kara angrily. "Who are you!?"

The figure rose quickly, running toward her. Kara noticed a pair of small breasts pressing against the dark material of the suit before dodging a kick. _It's a woman, strong and fast enough to fight me._ Kara dodged two punches directed at her face, unable to dodge in time a surface cut that the sword did on her arm. "Shit!" _I've to get rid of that damn sword!_ The adrenaline allowed her to ignore the pain, using her heat vision with the intention of melting her opponent's hand. But she dodged each of her rays, jumping over them. Kara was able to hold her at the waist, dropping back and banging her covered head against the floor. Then she knelt quickly on her back and pressed her arms tightly. The bone inside her right hand creaked, releasing the bright green sword.

"Where's the child!?" Kara twisted her injured arm, surprised to hear no groan of pain. "Tell me where's she!" She lifted her neck and hit her against the nearest cell. "Tell me!"

The woman raised her healthy fist. Kara prepared to catch the blow, but instead of hitting her, the woman hit with all her strength the glass wall behind, causing a horrible **_CRASH!_** and that hundreds of pieces of hard glass to fly everywhere. _No._ The prisoner in the cell stepped forward, looking at her with his huge red eyes. _Oh Fuck._

"Oh shit." Kara turned to call the bat cousins, who had been fighting Slade all that time. But her throat was caught in a giant white hand that threw her against the opposite wall as if she were ( ** _*PAFF*_** ) a rubber ball. Kara glanced at the woman in the green helmet crawling toward the Kryptonite sword. And then she felt a massive punch of the huge white monster in her stomach, making her sink into the wall like a nail into the wood.

"SOLOMON GRUNDY!" shouted the giant zombie.

* * *

 **Batwoman**

 **8:31 AM**

"You see, there's only one way you can win, Batman. We're all tired of wasting time, just give us Lena Luthor and you'll get the girl back," said Slade. "She misses her father so much..."

Her cousin's only response was to throw him a batarang, both of them running toward Slade to attack him. Out of the corner of her eye, Kate saw the person in the green helmet lunging against Kara. _Shit. She can handle it._ Batwoman attacked the man from the right, trying to kick him while Batman attacked him from the left. But Slade dodged their synchronized attacks, attacking both at the same time without difficulty. Kate drew her guns, leaping into the air and shooting to his shoulders, but the bullets bounced as he fought Bruce. _He's fully armored._ Batman jumped to kick him, throwing batarangs while Batwoman landed next to him. Slade dropped to the floor to dodge the projectiles, then took his own guns and shot them. Kate dodged a bullet that passed dangerously close to her head, ignoring the slight pain caused by the one that bounced in her suit. From her cousin's glove popped off a hard hook that slammed into Slade's chest, drawing him quickly and allowing Bruce to strike him with enough force to throw him into the air. Kate jumped on her cousin's back quickly, her foot crashing into Slade's arm with a slight **_crack_** before landing on the floor. Slade fell to his feet, between them. _We must hurry._ Batwoman kicked him in the left, dodging two punches, but the third landed in her ear, causing her head to beat for less than a second. She tricked Slade into thinking she was going to shoot him, but at the last moment her other hand became a fist and hit his wounded arm.

Batman took the opportunity to shoot his hook again, pulling the steel wire so that Slade's heavy body hit the floor. When his opponent wanted to get up, Batman pressed a button on his belt and an electric shock shook Slade's body. Kate swore she heard a laugh before Slade swiftly drew his sword and cut the steel wire before Batman could electrocute him again. Her cousin dodged a blow of the sword, another, but he did not dodge the kick that blown him off. Batwoman tried to attack him from behind but Slade turned and avoided the blow. She had only an instant to avoid the deathly sharp sword, but the tip of the weapon tore the red bat at her chest. _Fuck!_ Slade kicked her legs, making her fall, the tip of his sword brushing against her chin. "Say good night," said the man in the orange and black helmet. But before feeling any pain, her cousin appeared next to Slade, sinking a knife in the sensitive point of his elbow with a murderous fury. The man screamed in pain. Kate took advantage of her position to kick hard on Slade's legs, making him fall. Batman took his sword and pistols and threw them away, pressing his foot against the wound on his arm and obtaining a groan. " _Where. Is. the girl?_ "

"You think I don't know your rule of not killing, Bat?"

Batwoman got to her feet and kicked his chin. "Tell us where's she, or say goodbye to your arm."

The man laughed without joy. "Kryptonians are not as useful as they seem. Did you know they can't see through lead? We had to replace all the wooden cabinets in the cells with lead."

Kate felt her vision cloud over before hitting him again with all her strength. "You put a seven-year-old girl inside the cell of a psycho killer!?" her hand twisted Slade's other arm, almost breaking the bone. "What cell is she in? Tell me! Tell me or you'll have to write it with your mouth, you piece of shit!"

 ** _*CraaAacK*_**

The noise of glass breaking drew Batwoman's attention. Kate looked up. _Oh shit_. Kara and the masked figure stood in the middle of the hallway, twenty meters away, a shower of glass around them. The sound of huge feet walking forward ( ** _*PAM* *PAM* *PAM*_** ) reverberated through the walls. _No. Not him._ The giant zombie stepped forward ( ** _*PAM*_** ) went out into the hall. "SOLOMON GRUNDY!"

Slade took advantage of their momentary distraction to tear them down, getting up in a hurry, even with his broken bones. "Requiem!" shouted Slade. The figure of the green helmet ran towards him, both fleeing towards the door in less than a second.

"SOLOMON GRUNDY!" the giant zombie hit Kara against the wall, murderous fury in his red eyes.

Both cousins sprang to their feet, growling at the same time. Batwoman turned to her cousin. "Help Kara! Find Helena!" she shouted before running for the door, not missing a moment. "They won't escape!"

Kate ran out of the room chasing the two Veritas members, her teeth so tight that she feared they would break. _You can't escape from me._

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El Danvers**

 **8:37 AM**

"Solomon Grundy!"

Before the giant zombie could hit her again, Kara saw a batarang hit the huge hand and explode. The hand flew away, shattered into pieces, but the creature made no moan of pain, only a growl of rage. The Kryptonian pushed herself out of the wall, her vision clouded with anger, grabbing the zombie by his neck and lifting him up into the air. "SOLOMON GRUNDY!"

"KARA ZOR-EL!"

Her fist slammed into the zombie's hard jaw, feeling his teeth being shattered against her fist. Her surprise was great when his teeth and his amputated hand began to regenerate before her eyes. _What the fuck?_ Grundy kicked her, sending her away like a ball. "Solomon Grundy! Born on a Monday, christened on Tuesday..."

"Torn to pieces on Wednesday!" Kara stood up, using her heat vision to melt the monster's feet. Grundy fell to the ground, crawling with his hands in her direction, pure killer rage in his eyes. _This monster can regenerate, he's invulnerable and I can't kill him. I have to stop him until..._

An explosive batarang sank into his forehead.

 ** _*BANG*_**

Kara felt intense disgust kicking her stomach at being covered with the monster's blood and brain, but her surprise was greater when she realized she also felt a sickly satisfaction.

"His head will return," said Batman, running to her side. "Listen, Helena's in one of the cells. Slade knew we'd have to open them to find her. You're looking for Helena, I'll distract Grundy."

The monster's head began to grow as Kara shook her head. "He's too strong."

Batman grunted. "And the cells too! The prisoners could escape!"

 ** _*Sarzs*_** With an unpleasant sound, a head, white like a rotting worm, emerged from the monster's body again. "Solomon Grundy!" The zombie stood up, lashing out at Batman, who jumped on him and slid down his back, using his cable to catch his legs and make him fall. Kara pursed her lips and ran to the nearest cell where a nasty looking birdman looked at her with frightened eyes. _The Penguin_. Kara broke the transparent door with a punch, the glass flying around her. The man raised his hands. "Don't hurt me!"

Kara quickly used her freeze breath to the man's feet, covering them with ice. The Penguin screamed with fear or pain, Kara did not know. "Monster!"

"You'll be fine." Kara ran to the lead cabinet, tearing off the door. There was nothing inside. "Dammit!"

"I know nothing, I swear!"

Kara ignored him and ran to the next cell, dodging a huge severed arm that Batman cut off the zombie and threw away. ( _*"Solomon Grundy!"*_ ). She broke the next cell with a punch. _Killer Croc._ The crocodile man tried to attack her. _This one is stronger_. Using her speed and her strength, Kara dislocated his arms and legs, pushing him away and causing him to stumble and fall. Killer Croc screamed in pain. To be sure, Kara covered his whole body except the head with ice. Then she ripped open the door of the lead cabinet, letting out a curse when she found it empty.

Kara ran to the next cell, breaking the transparent wall and repeating the process with the prisoner. The closet door flew away. _Empty_. Without wasting time, she ran to the next, repeating everything with the difference that the prisoner spat at her. _Empty!_ She ran to the next. Poison Ivy tried to fight while Kara froze her. _Empty! Empty! Empty!_

"You're wasting your time," said the red-haired woman, resembling a poisonous plant.

 ** _*POW*_**

Kara shuddered at the sound of a rumble from the hallway. Batman was on the back of the zombie, two knives in his hands, fighting two giant white arms. "Hurry up!" groaned the bat. Kara used her heat vision to melt the zombie's hands and gain some time. _Helena, I'm coming._

Kara ran to the last transparent wall, breaking it in less than a second. The prisoner inside applauded happily. "Supergirl! I'm yar fan! Can you autograph my hammer? Just write 'For Harley with love, Supersexy'."

Kara froze her immediately, making sure to cover her mouth. The clown woman frowned. Kara immediately ran to the lead cabinet. "Helena!" Before she touched it, the smell of blood reached her nose. _No!_ "Helena! Talk to me! I'm here!"

Kara destroyed the closet door.

.

.

.

 _No_

It was as if time had stopped, and her heart had sunk to her bowels _. No no no_. She held out her trembling hand, lifting the small red-stained tooth. _A crawler inside_. On the floor, there was enough blood to impregnate the air with that unmistakable salty smell of child blood. But no trace of the child. "You bastard."

Grunting, Kara ran off at full speed, where Batman was fighting the giant zombie. Unwilling to control herself, the Kryptonian jumped on the monster and sunk her fist into his chest, ripping his heart out and throwing it away. "Solom-!" Batman took his chance to jump over his huge neck and surround him with his cable, strangling the beast with all the strength of his human arms. _FUUUUCK!_ Kara sunk her fist back into the monster, her hand clenching around the spine, ripping his bones out of him. A frightful amount of blood covered her body, but Kara felt it warm as hot water. The monster collapsed like a grotesque bag of rotten flesh, still trying to bite Batman. He sank his knife into the zombie's mouth, nailng his head to the ground. Before he could regenerate, Kara covered his body with ice, blowing with all her might. Half of the floor filled with bloody ice before Kara realized.

It was Batman who forced her to stop, his body hard as a stone. "Helena?"

Kara could not help letting out a sob, opening her hand to reveal the small bloody tooth. "It was a trap."

Batman shook his head, his lips white. He took his daughter's little tooth as if it were a deadly weapon. "SLADE!"

Kara felt like something inside her was breaking up.

* * *

 **Batwoman**

 **8:37 AM**

"Catwoman, I'm chasing them. Tell me where they're going," said Kate running, turning left in a hallway.

 _'They're going towards the maximum security sector,'_ replied Selina.

In her ear, Lena let out a little gasp. _'They want to free someone. Batwoman, who's on that side of the building?'_

"The genocidal psychos," groaned Kate.

Furious adrenaline raced through her veins like a train about to derail. A bad feeling grew in her chest as she noticed the absence of any guard, the enormous asylum as empty as a house full of ghosts. _You won't escape_. Her feet felt light against the floor, not worrying about being silent. Anyway, they knew she was after them.

The figure in the green helmet was the first thing she saw, standing in the middle of the hallway with a long sword in its hands. No doubt they were waiting for her. Kate stopped ten feet away, clenching her teeth and pointing her guns at the person. "Where's Slade?"

The figure did not answer, but ran forward raising the sword. _Of course_. Kate shot, but to her astonishment all the shots were repelled with the sword. Batwoman jumped on the figure, dodging the sword at the last second, falling behind it. The figure ran back toward her like a furious bull. Kate braced herself, ducking her fist and holding its arm at the last moment. Pressing a button on her belt, Batwoman felt the electricity emanating quickly from her gloves and twisting her opponent. But to her surprise, that monstrously strong hand closed around her throat in spite of the electric shock, hurling her hard against the wall. Her head hit concrete, the hardness of her helmet cushioning the blow.

 _'Batwoman, it has super strength,'_ Kate heard Selina's voice in her ear.

The figure lifted her by the neck quickly, separating her feet from the ground.

 _'Use your tear gas! Don't try to-!'_

Selina's voice was cut off as the person in the green helmet took off her black mask, throwing it away like a child's toy. _No. Not this. No._ Kate, unmasked, tried to reach her belt, but it seemed miles away. The movement of her hands did not go unnoticed for the figure in the helmet, who needed less than a second to take her right hand and twist it, breaking her wrist. Kate could not help letting out a moan of pain, mingled with anger. "I promise... You'll pay."

The figure spoke for the first time, its voice stiff and mocking, almost cheerful. "I hate bats, always screaming like rats. Better keep some of your dignity, Batbaby."

Kate opened her eyes at that voice, trying to find a way to take it off. "Who are you?"

"I'm a song," the hand tightened, preventing her from breathing. "Of the greatest orchestra ever."

The figure punched her in the nose. Kate felt the pain explode in her face, and then everything went black.

"I'm Requiem."

* * *

 **Lena**

 **8:41 AM**

Everything occurred too fast to know for sure what was happening. Both were typing at full speed, Selina trying to help Kate and Lena reinforcing the security system to prevent Slade Wilson from finding whatever he was looking for. _Whoever._ Lena listened to the sounds of Batman's fight in her earpiece, as the man defended himself against that monster capable of fighting a Kryptonian. Beside her, Selina was getting nervous when her eyes opened painfully. "Batwoman, it has super strength!"

Lena listened in horror a groan on the other side.

"Use your tear gas! Don't try to-!"

 _*Fazzzzzz*_ The fibrous sound flooded her ears, terrifying as the cacophony before a tragedy. Lena's eyes locked on the monitor. The Batwoman's signal had disappeared, as if the darkness had swallowed it.

"Batwoman," said Selina in the penetrating silence. "Batwoman, respond."

Nothing.

"Dammit..."

 _'SLADE!'_

The male scream cut the silence, sharp as two needles sinking into her eardrums. Lena's heart began to ache, her eyes wet. _The girl's dead. The girl's dead. The girl's dead and it's my fault._

"Bru-Batman?" asked Selina in a low voice.

It was Kara who answered. _'Helena's not here.'_

"That's impossible, the tracker..."

 _'They removed her tooth, Catwoman. They knew it. Helena was never here.'_

Lena saw the woman sob softly, her hand covering her mouth and her glazed eyes. Lena bit her lip. "Kara, Batwoman disappeared. We can't find her. I think she's in trouble."

 _'I'll use my vision,'_ said Kara. Four eternal seconds passed before she heard a gasp. _'Damn, she's hurt! Her head is bleeding! I don't see Slade or the other.'_

 _'Catwoman, we need the emergency stretcher,'_ said Batman. On the monitor, Lena watched as they both moved swiftly to where Kate had been. _'We'll return to the Batcave. Time of arrival, less than seven minutes.'_

"Lena!" Selina turned to her, rising abruptly from her chair. "We need your help with the first aid kit. You have medical knowledge?"

"I'm not a doctor, but I can help," replied Lena, stepping away from the computers, hurrying toward the closet where the first aid kit was kept. "It's obvious that it was a trap. If Helena's not in Arkham, Slade must have her hidden in another leaded place, but why?" she said quickly, thinking aloud, not knowing if the other woman was listening. "I'm the target. They expected Bruce to hand me over to get Helena back." Lena got to the closet, reaching for the handle. "We've to do it, the most important thing is- _AH!_ "

Helena was inside, trembling like a leaf in the wind, her yellow pajamas stained red. Her face was covered with blood, flowing from her mouth and dripping down her chin. From her parted lips, Lena could see she was missing an incisor, the rest of her teeth stained with scarlet. But what made her freeze completely was the absolute terror in those blue eyes. "The monster..." stammered the girl sobbing. "The monster..."

"Helena!" Lena leaned forward, trying to touch the child, but Helena stepped back like a little wounded animal. "Helena, how the-!? You're safe, your mother's here, she-"

 ** _*BANG*_**

The sound of the shot bounced across the cave, causing hundreds of bats to scream in terror at the same time. The bullet hit the wall at her side, causing a small cloud of dust. Helena screamed. Lena's heart almost exploded suddenly. Turning to look for the attacker, her mouth opened as she found Mrs Wayne pointing a gun at her with her supposedly injured hand, a small crooked smile on her lips. "The girl doesn't matter, you're right, Gap. She can still get out of here alive, you just have to take off your medallion... And die, of course."

Lena raised her hands, trying to calm the woman. "S-Selina?"

"Not really," replied the woman. "My name's Hannibal Bates, but I prefer Everyman. Mrs Wayne is... far, to put it one way." He took a few steps forward. "Now take off that medallion so I can kill you. The world won't continue suffering because of you. Each one of the deaths..." Everyman aimed at the girl. Helena cried. "...were your fault."

* * *

 **Diana of Nowhere**

 **?:?**

 ** _'RAAAAAAAWWWRRR'_**

The giant hound was even more monstrous than Diana remembered. The ears of his second head were completely ripped apart, as if some other beast had tried to bite them. The eyes of the third head looked in opposite directions, its lip hurt and bleeding. The first head twitched nervously. Cerberus had always been fatally frightening, but Diana used to thought he was a magnificent beast too. Now he looked like a mad rabid dog. Both of them petrified, watching the beast with such a speeding heart that Diana feared that it could betray them.

 _'Alex! Diana!'_ yelled Maggie's voice from above. _'Hold on! I'll get you out!'_

 ** _'OOOUUUUUU'_** Cerberus howled furiously, standing on his hind legs to reach the door through which they had fallen. But his three heads did not fit in its space, and they began to fight each other, grunting furiously and forgetting of them for the moment. The second head bit the first, and the third head attacked its neck.

Diana pulled Alex's hand gently, to push her to behind the beast, trying to walk as quietly as possible. Diana's eyes tried to distinguish something in the dim light, but she could barely see Alex by her side. We've to go up again. But the only way out was climbing up the stone wall, and that meant they would be exposed to the beast. _If only I could fly. Dammit._

"How do we beat that thing?" whispered Alex.

Diana clenched her teeth in the darkness. "It's dark and he can't see well. We've to distract him so we can climb to the top."

"There are rocks on the ground," whispered Alex. "If we throw them away the noise will distract him."

Diana hated that idea immediately, but being unable to think of a better one on the infernal noise of the howling of the beast, she had no choice but to agree. She and Alex bent down, palpating the stone floor to search for all the rocks their pockets might contain. Diana thought she saw, for less than a second, a familiar glow in the young agent's eyes. Determination, courage, and fury. _She could be the perfect Amazon._ Diana watched Cerberus, as the beast lost interest in the door and sniffed around, remembering the presence of possible prey hidden in the dark. _Alex has to get out of here at all cost._

"You go first," whispered Diana. "You're lighter. You can climb faster."

"But..."

"Do it," she murmured firmly, noting how the Cerberus seemed to listen to her murmurs slightly. Diana held one of the stones and pointed to the enormous darkness on the other side of the pit. If there's any god that's not against us, please, let Alex come out. The brunette threw the stone with all her strength, as far as possible. **_*Pank*_**

 ** _'AUUUUUU' 'GRRRRRRR'_** The three heads grunted at the same time as Cerberus threw himself into the darkness, a raging blood-thirsty monster. The whole pit trembled at the force of his paws againts the ground as he walked away. Silently, Alex ran toward the stone wall, a diffuse shadow moving in the darkness. Diana threw the second stone a little further to the left ( ** _*Pank* 'RAAAWWR'_** ) when she saw the Agent start to climb the great stone wall, as fast as possible without falling. _C'mon Alex don't fall, don't fall_. Cerberus's force running in the darkness caused small tremors on the floor. Diana continued to throw stones for almost seven minutes, feeling the damp heat coming down her back and trying not to let her tiredness betray her. Alex was halfway there when Diana stopped listening to the beast's grunts. Tartarus. Without Cerbero's grunt, it was much harder to place him in the dark. Clenching her teeth, Diana again threw another stone ( ** _*Pank*_** ), however, there was no furious roar later. Repressing her urge to gasp, she sharpened her ears to the utmost to try to hear him. All she could hear was a soft murmur in the darkness, like a spirit moving in the air. _He's moving_. The noise was on her left, then on her right, then he was quiet for six seconds. _He smells something. I've to…_

Six blue eyes opened in front of her.

 _'RAAAAAAAAWRRR'_

The three heads threw themselves at her with their sharp jaws open. Diana managed to step back in time, jumping over the first head as she took out the Dagger. The object almost fell out of her hand. The second head tried to bite her, but Diana dodged it and its teeth stuck in the snout of the first head. The third head was luckier for being closer. Diana could not dodge it and ended up trapped inside that huge deadly mouth. But before the beast closed his mouth to shatter her, Diana swiftly plunged the Dagger into its tongue. His monstrous scream left her ears beating. The beast closed his mouth. Diana felt a slight prick on her arm before she was spit out, her senses altered as if she had hit her head. The second head darted forward to tore her arm away, but Diana managed to step back. With a growl of rage, the brunette sank the Dagger into its right eye ( ** _'AAAARRRGGGG'_** ), splashing herself with its thick black blood. Then she slipped quickly through the thick neck of the beast to get away from the heads, and clung to the fur of his loin as if she were riding a monstrous horse. But Cerberus was enraged to see that his prey had escaped the reach of his teeth, and began to leap and twist savagely, trying to make her fall. Diana sank the Dagger into the beast's skin and clung to it with all her might, feeling all her internal organs twitching inside her. The darkness kept turning around her, making her lose the sense of orientation.

"HEY!"

Cerberus stopped abruptly and Diana almost fell. Stuck to the wall like an insect, Alex had stopped, one hand clutching a stalactite and the other throwing stones at the beast. "Hey, here, Droopy! Look at me! Come to me!"

"Alex, no!" shouted Diana.

"HERE!" Alex shouted again, ignoring her. "Come here, you filthy beast!"

Cerberus roared like three furious lions, hurling forward to devour the human with his deadly teeth. But a second before the first head could bite her, Alexandra let go of the wall, letting herself fall. The beast's three heads struck the stone wall. "Alex!" shouted Diana. She leaned down to look for her, feeling relief when she saw she had grasped one of the monster's paws. Cerberus recovered, and with a grunt he ducked his heads to catch Alex. Alex waited until the nearest head was close enough to draw her sword with her right hand, nailing it to its tongue with a violent roar. The head screamed and its mouth filled with blood as Alex tugged on her sword to retrieve it. Diana watched her jump from the paw and hold onto its nose, pushing herself toward its snout and over the head. The second and third heads threw themselves at her to devour her, but Alex attacked them with her sword with fury. Cerberus' two faces filled with blood. The head she was on violently shook to get rid of her, but Alex grabbed its fur and circled its skull with her legs. Diana began crawling up the neck, trying to keep her balance.

"Get out of there!" yelled the brunette. Alex managed to fight both heads at the same time, having to release Cerberus's fur to wield her sword with both hands. Both heads attacked her with infernal fury, but the most dangerous one was that under the Agent _. If Alex falls, they'll devour her._ "Alex, get out of there!" she yelled again. Quick as lightning, Alex sank her sword into the nose of the first head ( ** _'AAAARRRGGGRRR'_** ) and jumped on its snout, pushing herself over the head and down its neck. The second head tried to bite her but she jumped in time, its teeth digging into the neck beneath her. Crazy with anger, Cerberus roared and began to spin around the pit like a raging bull, so fast that Diana felt pain in her ears.

Both clung to the hound with all their might, their bodies barely resisting the furious onslaught of the beast. Cerberus kept turning for an eternity, and Diana was frustrated to feel that she was getting tired. Her gaze met Alex's for less than a second, only a few feet away and so far from her. Then the Agent let out a scream full of frustration and mortal fury, a sound far more disturbing than Cerberus's barking, and raising her sword, plunged it into the skin of the beast's neck. Cerberus screamed, his three mouths painfully open and a river of blood flowing out of his wound, soaking Alex completely. With a violent pull, Alex took out her sword just to sink it a little to the right. The hound finally stopped spinning and began to leap and jerk, desperate to get rid of the human, but Alex groaned and stabbed his neck a third time. From where Diana was, the Agent looked like a flea sinking a sharp, long needle into a bear's neck. Alex jerked her sword harder, trying to find some important vein. "Why-don't-you-die-at-ONCE?!" she screamed at the hound as she stabbed his neck.

Finally, Cerberus collapsed violently on the floor, trembling for of the loss of the blood flowing from his neck. The force of the impact made the Dagger slip and Diana fell rolling down his side, landing painfully against the stone floor. The pain in her right arm was almost unbearable. Turning her head, she found a sharp white fang piercing her bicep. _Damn._ Adrenaline must have prevented her from noticing it before. _I'll find a way to kill that ghost._

The Amazon gritted her teeth and stood, searching for Alex in the dim light. The human was still on the wounded hound, breathing restlessly, as if she had just run a marathon. "Alex..." She turned to look at her, but her eyes could not find her. Sighing wearily, Alex pulled of her sword one last time. But without the adrenaline she lost her balance and fell back, rolling down the beast's side. Unlike Diana, she was lucky enough that her fall was cushioned by one of Cerberus's paws. With effort, she stood up as Diana moved slowly toward her.

The Agent was covered in blood from head to toe, but that did not stop her from holding her right leg and limping toward the wounded monster's heads. Alex stumbled and fell to her knees, letting out a groan of pain. Diana reached her, helping her to her feet and surrounding her waist to help each other to walk. The floor was slippery from the beast's blood. Alex pulled her to walk faster, small grunts of fury escaping her throat. Diana's legs ached unbearably as they reached the hound's heads, drawing close enough to feel their cold, faint breath. Alex raised her sword and plunged it into a blue eye of the first head, moving it to make sure to destroy its brain. The second head still had some strength and tried to open its mouth to growl, without success. Alex sank her sword into its eye with a quick movement, then spat on its snout. The last head made a curious sound, a mixture of weeping and moaning, like a puppy begging for mercy. Alex sank her sword into the eye Diana had stabbed before, causing the pool of blood to grow beneath them. The Agent used the hairy snout on the head to dry her sword as best she could, but it was too drenched with blood to make much of a difference.

"We should get out of here," gasped Diana in a low voice. "Some creatures of Tartarus can regenerate themselves."

"This monster will stay dead, won't it?" asked Alex hoarsely.

"I don't know," replied Diana. "No one had ever killed him before."

Alex put her dirty sword in her belt. "Let's go, Diana. We still have to get rid of a ghost."

* * *

 **Lena**

 **8:44 AM**

Strangely, Lena's mind saw everything with a clarity that surpassed her senses, as if the sun had risen in the middle of the Batcave. The sound of Helena's frightened sobs seemed to be coming from another world, the screams of the bats resembled crows cowering in the night air, and the cold green eyes of the false Selina glowed with a perverse thirst for blood.

"Easy," said Lena, still holding her hands up. "Let Helena go. This is just between Veritas and me."

"You think I'm stupid?" replied the impostor, aiming at Helena. "I know what you can do with that thing, Lena Luthor, but I assure you, you can't move fast enough to push the girl away. I'll shoot her in the leg. I don't think she cares, she and I have been having fun all night. Mommy taught you many ways to hurt a person, right Helena?" said Everyman quietly. "I'll shoot her in the legs, then in the arms, and if she's still alive, in the head." The fake Selina touched the trigger.

"NO!" shouted Lena, her voice furious. "I'll take it off right now, don't hurt her."

"No tricks."

Lena pressed her lips together, bringing her hands slowly up to her neck to take off the medallion. _You have to do something._ **We both will.** The silver medallion left her neck, held tightly in Lena's hand as if it were an oxygen tank in the middle of space. **Do not be afraid. Remember what you are, what you can do. You have no limit.**

And with that, Lena dropped the medallion to the floor. It was the first time in months she took it off. For less than an instant she could not breathe, as if she had forgotten how to do it. After a moment, Lena gasped like a newborn.

The false Selina bit his lip, ceasing aiming at Helena to aim at Lena. "You're like a leech sucking blood, only you'll never get fat and slimy."

"Tell me something." Lena looked into his eyes, ignoring the pistol. "Is Selina alive? My friends? My mother?" she said in her cold voice. "You're going to kill me anyway. Kara and Batman won't get there in time and you know it. Let me know what happened to them."

"The cat is alive for now, Mercer thinks she can be useful." Everyman shrugged. "Your sister always had a soft spot for mothers."

 _Lutessa's not my sister!_ Lena yelled furiously in her mind.

"As for the redhaired Amazon... Let's just say she's sleeping right now." Her finger stroked the trigger. "Good night, Leech."

The false Selina pulled the trigger. Time stopped, Lena watching as the bullet slowly broke the air to enter her body and pierce her heart. ( **'Remember what you are'** ). In that eternity that lasted for the nanosecond, Lena lifted her right arm, clenching her fist firmly. _I know what I am._ Her feet settled on the floor. _I know what I've always been._

 ** _*PLAWN*_** The bullet bounced on her bracelet, falling to the floor like a child's toy.

Everyman opened his mouth in astonishment, tearing the beauty of Selina's face with her disbelieving grimace. "NO!"

"A simple gun doesn't work with Amazons," said Lena, narrowing her eyes.

Everyman shot ( ** _*BANG*_** ) again, Lena lifting her other arm so that the bullet bounced on the bracelet ( ** _*PLAWN*_** ). A tingling sensation ran down her arm, without being pain, rather a unpleasant tickle. _No one can make me forget who I am._ The impostor fired again. Lena repelled the bullet one more time ( ** _*PLAWN*_** ), stepping forward. He fired twice in a row. Lena repelled both bullets swiftly, clenching her teeth. _Never again._ Everyman growled in fury and fired bullet after bullet, small bursts of sound bouncing off the Batcave ( ** _*BANG* *BANG* *BANG*_** ). Lena moved both arms slightly to the left, so that the bangles could meet with the bullets **_(*PLAWN* *PLAWN* *PLAWN*_** ) and these fall to the floor. Everyman pulled the trigger again, but no bullets came out.

"Let's do it the old-fashioned way, then," snarled the false Selina, throwing away the pistol. Lena's eyes widened in horror when she saw him pull a knife out his pocket. "I'll take your head to Mercer!"

Hannibal Bates lunged at her like a tiger, his face turned into a maniacal imitation of Selina's, the knife pointing at her heart. Lena managed to step back in time and dodge the attack, the knife barely scratching her hip. Bates lowered the knife again like a dangerous tusk eager to sink into her skin, tearing her shirt. "You're no match, girl," growled Bates, lifting the knife to sink it into her neck. Lena moved her head almost too late, feeling the blade cut through her cheek, a fleeting flash of pain. Lena reacted quickly and buried her fingernails in that female hand, holding it with all her might, the knife dangerously close to her neck. Lena turned her head and bit him on the wrist, causing the false Selina to let out a scream. ( _'Do not forget to use your legs too, dear'_ ), said her grandmother in her head. Lena kicked him hard on the hip, her knee impacting against his pelvis. Everyman's left hand scratched her healthy cheek with anger, sharp nails creating threads of pain from her ear to her lip. Lena managed to punch him with her free hand, still biting the hand that held the knife. Finally Bates released the knife and pulled his hand tightly in a groan of pain. Lena spat an unpleasant mix of blood and skin.

"BITCH!" screamed Everyman, squeezing his bloody hand, kicking her in the leg and almost making her fall. Lena dodged the second kick, trying to catch her foot. But Everyman, instead of kicking her again, lunged at her like an angry bull, falling on Lena and causing them both to hit the floor. The thud of the hard floor against Lena's head caused a painful hollow echo. "Don't move, it'll only be a second," said Bates, disfiguring Selina's face in a sinister grimace. He pressed her neck with both hands, squeezing with all his strength. Lena tried to push those sharp fingers away from her neck, feeling the pressure build up behind her eyes. Selina's mouth let out a diabolical burst of laughter ( _'HA HA HA HA HA'_ ), squeezing so tightly that Lena's vision began to cloud over, her lungs burning in her chest, a distant buzzing in her ears, her legs fighting each time with less force. _Kara..._

 ** _*POW*_**

There was a confused glitter before her eyes and then her neck was freed. Panting painfully, Lena felt the weight of Bates falling on her, motionless and painful. Repulsive. Lena shoved him off with her last bit of strength, looking up for an explanation. There, with her face covered in blood and tears, Helena held a black stick with the Batman's symbol, too big for her little hands. Lena realized with amazement that the girl had hit the killer on the head with enough force to stun him momentarily.

"Helena..." gasped Lena, trying to make her hot throat inhale a little air. "Go away..."

"The m-monster hurt me! He took my mom!" Helena wept, but Lena heard no panic, no sadness, no fear in her voice. Just hate and fury. And then a chilling coldness. "He's going to hurt us," she said, her voice slightly hoarse because of the lack of the incisive tooth.

Helena raised the stick again, using all her strength to strike Bates, who was beginning to recover, in the head again. **_*PAW*_**

"Helena," Lena felt the warm blood trickle down her neck, making an effort to sit up.

 ** _*PAW*_**

"Stop..."

 ** _*PAW* *PAW* *PAW*_**

"Helena, stop!" Lena began to crawl toward her, her whole body screaming in pain. "It's enough!"

But Helena did not stop. And the horrible noise of the stick hitting against his skull repeated over and over again. _She doesn't have enough strength to kill him_ , Lena thought, clenching her teeth to withstand the pain. But she knew it was **_(*PAW PAW PAW PAW PAW PAW PAW PAW*_** ) a lie. Lena finally managed to reach her, holding her hands tightly and struggling with her to take the stick. Helena growled and tried to fight her, but Lena drew her as if to embrace her, holding her with all her strength and making sure to keep herself out of reach of her mouth so the girl could not bite her.

"Let me go!" cried Helena desperately. "Let me go, you witch! Mommy! Daddy! Help me! Daaaad!"

Lena continued to hold her even as her little pink nails stuck in her arms and her cries threatened to make her deaf. Her mind seemed to work in slow motion, trying to find a way to calm her down and get her to stop screaming. Her frustration was immense when she realized she could not.

A metal object glowed a few inches to the left. Lena blinked confusedly, until she recognized her own medallion _. But she can_. The brunette woman had no choice but grab the girl tightly by her hair with her left hand to release her right. Helena screamed in pain and fear and tried to bite her again. _Poor girl_ , Lena thought pitifully. Helena could never forget what had happened to her _. Or maybe yes_. Her right hand managed to stroke the edge of her medallion, squeezing her grip on Helena as she felt the hysterical girl's teeth biting into her left breast. _Fuck!_ Lena straightened, trying to ignore the pain and keep her calm as she slipped the necklace around her neck, feeling the comforting cold of the metal and the force flowing through her veins as if she had been given a shot of insulin. She could feel the Monitor at the back of her mind, powerful, calm, vigilant. Lena squeezed the girl's shoulders. "Calm down."

Helena's cries ceased, as if someone had covered her mouth with her hand. Lena felt like she was still trembling in her arms, but not attacking her, breathing as if she were drowning.

Lena took a deep breath, feeling pain as she inhaled. "Now you're going to sleep, you'll dream withpretty things, with your parents, your friends, and your toys. And Supergirl, you'll dream that Supergirl gives you a ride flying, while you feel the wind against your face," said Lena wearily, the corner of her lips rising slightly. "And when you wake up, you won't remember any of this, nothing, as if it never happened."

Gradually, the tension in little Wayne's body diminished, until she was completely still and relaxed. Lena leaned over to watch her face, dirty with blood and tears, but silent and serene. She gritted her teeth, feeling like a stranger inside her own body, still trying to process everything that had happened in less than seven minutes. "You will be fine," said Lena, not knowing if she was talking to the sleeping girl or to herself. "I'm sorry, Helena, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have come here," she sobbed. "I never wanted anyone to get hurt."

 **It is not your fault.**

"I know," answered Lena dryly. "That doesn't make me feel better."

The Monitor did not respond, perhaps because even she did not know what to say at the time. _Helena almost..._ Overcoming her fear, Lena looked up to find the body of the false Selina. Immediately she felt desires of throw up. _Oh my_ _God_. Everyman's hand trembled slightly, like the cut-off tail of a lizard. His head ( _oh God there's so much blood so much blood oh God_ ) was shattered like a broken walnut, his nose a viscous red pulp. His right eye was out of place, as if it wanted to escape from its socket. A pool of blood and other viscous substance was forming beneath his head, gushing from the wounds of his broken skull. Bates opened and closed his mouth like a fish, but Lena did not hear the sound of his breathing. "Oh Fuck it!" yelled Lena in horror. Suddenly she felt the impulse to get away from Helena, to leave the girl on a stretcher to think about what to do. _She's six, she didn't know what she was doing. She was just afraid,_ thought Lena, watching the dying killer. _She was just afraid._

The roar of the Batmobile again flooded the cave, echoing the walls. Lena watched the car with a mixture of relief and horror. Kara came out immediately with Kate in her arms, her hair even redder for the blood and her eyes closed. Her eyes met Kara's. At first she saw confusion, then horror, as if her beautiful blue eyes were screaming. Her girlfriend saw the destroyed body of who she thought was Mrs Wayne. Her mouth opened, but unable to make any sound, only the mixture of a howl and a horrified gasp. Then Kara noticed the wounds on her face and her neck, the blood that covered her body and Helena's. Lena was opening her mouth to say her name when she heard a scream that froze her blood.

"SELINA!" shouted Batman, running toward them. "What happened!? Speak!" he asked like a madman, kneeling beside the false Selina.

"No..." murmured Lena weakly, reaching out to grasp Batman's glove. "It's not Selina, Wayne," gasped with effort. "He's an impostor, an assassin who tried to kill us. He had Helena here. His name's Hannibal Bates, not Selina."

The man, to Lena's surprise, calmed down again, his hand shaking for less than a second. His gaze fell on his daughter.

"She's unconscious, but she's not hurt," said Lena.

Batman rushed to take her in his arms, rising from the ground and walking quickly to the stretchers, where Kara was taking care of Kate. Then he returned to her side, examining Bates for a way to move him without killing him. "How...?"

"Later," said Lena, putting her hands on the floor to stand up. "Now we have to save him. He's the only one who knows where Selina is, where my friends are. We can't let him die."

Feeling like she could walk without falling, Lena helped Batman up the dying man. Everyman gasped in pain, a thread of saliva running down his crooked open mouth. Lena tried not to think of the sour smell of all the blood impregnating the place. Instead, her eyes searched for Kara, who was cleaning Kate's wound as she watched her intently, so intensely that Lena knew she was using her x-rays to determine the severity of her injuries. Her fists clenched as they approached with Bates. And Lena knew, with disturbing clarity and absolute certainty, that Kara was holding back so as not to rip the heart out of the man who had tried to kill her.

* * *

 **Kate Kane**

 **10:25 AM**

Confused shapes floated inside her closed eyelids, meaningless words blurred by the unmistakable smell of blood. _Slade Wilson and his Frankenstein. I've to get up_ , thought Kate in her half-unconscious state. She felt something pressing against her head, the familiar feel of a bandage surrounding her skull, her throat dry. _I have to get up. I have to open my eyes_. Kate fought the blackness of her unconsciousness. As always, it was her willpower that allowed her to open her eyes, blinking rapidly so that her dizzy brain would once again associate images with information.

A corpse lay at her side, covered by a white sheet.

Kate stared at it, a tranquility that could have just looked like indifference. Scarlet stains dotted the sheet. She tried to observe the outline of its face, trying to figure out who it was, but without success.

Someone took her hand. Turning her head slowly, her eyes met those of his cousin. "You have a slight cranial concussion. You will feel dizzy for a while."

Kate nodded imperceptibly, looking at the mysterious corpse beside her. "Who?"

"A Veritas's killer. We tried to save him, but he died half an hour ago," her cousin answered slowly. His eyes darkened, even by her cousin's standards. "Helena's safe. The killer had her here all the time."

Kate raised an eyebrow silently, internally relieved that the corpse was the killer's. "Too bad we couldn't interrogate him."

"He was a shapeshifter named Hannibal Bates," his eyes froze. "He passed himself off as Selina, so he took Helena, and his plan was for us to leave so he could kill Luthor."

 _Funny, you had sex with a psycho killer. A male one._ Kate pursed her lips and sat up. "Lena?"

"Alright." Kate saw him tighten his lips.

"Who did they take, Bruce?" Kate asked. "Tell me it wasn't the Joker."

"Slade and his partner..."

"Requiem," murmured Kare.

"They took Toyman away." Bruce leaned forward. "Winn Schott's father."

Kate felt the bile form a ball in her throat. "Where are they?" she asked, holding on to the stretcher to get up.

She did not need her cousin's answer, because she saw them as soon as she glanced around. They were sitting in front of the computers, near where ( _oh my God Helena_ ) her niece lay on a stretcher. Kate slid her feet off the stretcher and stepped toward them, ignoring Bruce's look of concern.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El Danvers**

 **10:23 AM**

The ointment felt on her fingers, as frozen as her insides, and as, she supposed, her face too. Because Lena had not looked into her eyes for the last twenty minutes, since the heart of that garbage had stopped beating. Not even now that they were less than ten centimeters away, Kara gently applying an ointment to both Lena's cheeks. And she knew perfectly well why Lena avoided her gaze.

Kara was madly furious.

The fury was so great, so intense, that it could well pass for coldness. Kara felt it grow with every second she saw the wounds on Lena's face, the bruises on her neck, the bittersweet scent of her blood out of her veins.

 _I should have known it was a fucking trap._

A pang of pain struck her in the lower abdomen, even though she was not hurt. Kara knew it was because of stress and she needed to calm down urgently, before anyone could get hurt. Her mouth trembled, as if it wanted to open itself to expel a shrill mix of incomprehensible screams and cries. Instead, Kara closed her eyes and breathed slowly and deeply, as she had seen Cat do in her yoga classes. _They have Selina_. She felt her hand tighten tightly around the pot of ointment. _Winn's father is free_. The temptation to break it was great, to shatter it, to imagine that it was Slade Wilson's head. _Lena almost died because I was stupid enough not to check the fucking Batcave._

Before destroying the ointment, Lena gently laid her hand on hers. Her green eyes locked on hers, sympathetic, reassuring, like green oceans of warm water. Two suns in the middle of a snowy day. "I almost beat him on my own," whispered Lena in a hoarse voice. "I was fast enough to use the bracelets, but then ..." Her voice trailed off. "He was strong and fast, like Selina. I think he could imitate her skills too."

Kara nodded nervously, not moving too much, afraid of the uncomfortable pain in her belly. Her head hurt a little, as if millions of mosquitoes buzzed in her ears. Lena's gaze softened. Kara dropped the pot, to place her hands on Lena's shoulders, caressing them slowly. "You're safe." _But for how long? For how long, Kara?_ "And that man's dead. You did what you had to do."

"I already told you, Kara," her eyes turned to the girl sleeping a few feet on a stretcher. Her yellow pajamas were almost completely stained with blood. "It wasn't me."

Kara sighed, stroking her arms, her eyes fixed on the worried wrinkles on her forehead. "I know, Potsticker, I meant that you erased her memory. She won't suffer for what happened. We-"

But Kara stopped talking as soon as she heard a slight groan coming from the other side of the room. She turned, watching as Batwoman slowly got out of the stretcher, walking toward them. "Kate." Kara stood up to head toward her, but Kate dodged her without looking at her, her attention on Lena. And all of Kara's hair stood up simultaneously. Kate's eyes were deathly cold, her jaw clenched tightly. She sat in front of Lena in silence, both looking at each other. Kara stayed where she was, watching and listening intently, worried but at the same time relieved. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Bruce standing next to his daughter, watching the scene with attentive eyes.

"I think you're good, Lena," said Kate coldly. "Unlike many people, including my cousin, I never thought you were evil as the rest of the Luthors. You showed it all the times you could have been, but you never were. It doesn't matter to me if you're a Luthor, an Amazon, or a dinosaur. I judge people by their own actions," said Kate quietly, Kara could see the wounded area of her head pounding painfully. "And your constant lies are the reason they kidnapped Helena, they have seen my face, and they have Selina. Have you thought about that?"

"I know," Lena replied. "We fell into the trap. They must have expected us to come here from the beginning."

"And they planned everything very well, because they made us look like idiots." Kate clasped her hands together. "While we were wasting time distrusting between us."

"You put cameras inside live animals to watch over us."

"And you lied since you came." Kate sat upright. "But it's not too late yet. We still have a chance. Tell me the truth, Lena, you owe us." Kate pursed her lips. "But think carefully about the next words that will come out of your mouth. Because if you lie to me, and my niece loses her mother because of you, I'll come for you." Kate's eyes met Kara's. "And even you won't be able to stop me."

Kara's heart began to race like crazy, her heartbeats rumbling in her ears. She looked at Lena, but only found understanding in her eyes, a cold calm similar to the one she had seen in other times, when her eyes were red and not green. Lena nodded slightly, glancing briefly at Bruce's inscrutable face. "They're everywhere. And I don't mean all the world. Veritas is in all the worlds, all the planets, and in all the Multiverse. They have influence in all the governments, they make that the things they want are fulfilled, they know what is going to happen before it happens, and they have the backing of the gods themselves." Her voice did not hesitate for a second. "They're invincible."

Kara noticed a slight increase in Kate's blood pressure, while Bruce's decreased significantly. "If their power were as great as you say, it would be impossible to them to remain hidden."

"It's precisely because of their size that they haven't been discovered, Wayne," answered Lena.

Kate cleared her throat. "Why do they want to kill you?"

Lena smiled almost sadly. "Because I don't have doubles."

Kate raised an eyebrow, not taking her gaze from hers.

Lena pursed her lips. "You are aware of the existence of the Multiverse and how it works, that all people have 'counterparts' in all the Earths. They can have different names, different stories, live in different places and do things you'd never do. But there will always be things they have in common. Lutessa called it 'patterns', similarities. Everyone has them. Everyone except me." Lena leaned back in her chair, her wounded face illuminated by the computer light. "I don't have any doubles, I don't follow any 'patrons'. I'm not bound to any... 'destiny.' To Veritas, my life is a mistake. People who exist only on one Earth are called 'Gaps'. "

"You said people," said Bruce. "How many there are like you?"

"Just me," answered Lena. "And... I think M'gann's baby too, and that's why they took her away. They kill Gaps as soon as they get a chance. Lillian kidnapped me and faked my death, that's the only reason I'm still alive."

"Okay, you don't have doubles," said Kate in a neutral voice, studying Lena. "Why does that make you so special?"

Kara walked to Lena, standing behind her and putting a hand on her shoulder. Lena took her hand while still looking at Kate. "Their names are Dax Novu and Mobius, they are two... Entities, long before the gods and the Multiverse. I mean billions of years. But don't say Mobius's name, Kate, it could hurt you."

"What the hell...?"

"It's true," said Kara, remembering the horrible headache she had suffered the day before in the tub. "We call them Monitor and Anti-Monitor. The Monitor is who Maggie tried to talk to you about yesterday, The Watcher."

Kate looked at Kara. "If Maggie tried to warn us, it's because that thing is dangerous."

"Maggie doesn't know the whole story." Lena touched her medallion. "The Monitor is, in the absence of an appropriate definition, a life-creating force. The Anti-Monitor is a destructive force, and Veritas obeys his orders." Lena wrinkled her mouth. "We fight against the God of the Multiverse, someone who can destroy a whole Universe in a single afternoon." Lena leaned forward, searching for Kate's eyes, as if desperate to make her understand. "He already has."

Batwoman did not move for a few minutes, not blinking, a small drop of sweat falling down her pale temple. "One is Satan and the other is God. How are you so sure which is which?"

"God and the Devil are concepts that our minds can understand. Good and evil. Reality isn't like that, Kate, it's not about good and evil, but about Life and Nothingness." Lena sighed. "You think we're crazy, I don't blame you, but there's something you do have to believe: thousands of children, some just babies, die every year because a group of people decide their lives are a mistake. Thousands of murders that look like accidents."

"Why?"

"Because he doesn't want the Monitor to eacape from her prison," said Lena softly.

Kara sighed. "The Monitor is trapped in a kind of interdimensional prison, a place outside the Multiverse. Since the Gaps are 'errors' in the Multiverse, they have a kind of... connection to the Monitor," explained Kara. "The Monitor is the only thing powerful enough to stop the Anti-Monitor, and if she does, Veritas will disappear forever, like a house of cards." Kara touched Lena's elbow. "Lena and I are going to get her out."

To her surprise, Kate let out a shrill laugh, without the slightest hint of fun. She laughed as if Kara had said the biggest and most ridiculous madness in the world. _Which is true, from the point of view of someone sane._ When she stopped laughing, her cheeks were a red almost as intense as her hair. "You two have lost your minds."

"It's our only choice," said Kara, her eyes fixed on Kate but her ears concentrated on Bruce's breathing. "If we fight against them, we lose. If they catch us, they kill us. If we don't do anything, they will never let go of our friends. Our only option is to destroy the organization, and the only way to do it is with a power similar to what they have," said Kara, her face serious. "We've to beat them, because we won't have a second chance. And it's not just Lena's life." Kara's lips tightened. "But for the lives of the millions who have died for millennia, and those who will continue dying if we don't do something. Your future children could be Gaps, children of your friends, children you see playing in the street. Veritas uses their blood to buy a monster's peace. I don't accept that peace, Kate." Her hands slid down Lena's shoulders. Actually, Kara was preparing to protect her if necessary. "It's not our best option, it's the only one. The Anti-Monitor has to be destroyed at all cost. We won't have peace until then."

"The only thing left to decide is whether you're going to try to stop us or not," said Lena to Kate. Then the brunette turned to look at Mr. Wayne, who watched them in silence with tense, tired eyes. "If we don't do it, you'll never see your wife again."

"I believe you," said Batman coldly, his hand on his daughter's head. "But you pose it as an easy decision, as if millions of people couldn't die if we follow your plan."

Kara looked at him. "An entire universe, at the whim of an evil Super-God, and many more will die if we stand idly by and pretend this is not real. That's not what heroes do. You're famous for your moral code, Mr. Wayne, but we don't have that option now. So, which side are you on?"

Wayne turned, removing his cape and leaving it on his daughter. "I'll support you, because I want to stop Veritas." He turned and walked up the stairs, taking off the rest of his suit on the way. He seemed thousands of light-years away. "But I'm not going to fight one being all-powerful with another one. We can't control one, let alone two. Forget about it. We'll find another way."

"There's not, Wayne," said Lena seriously. "Don't fool yourself into thinking otherwise."

"And you don't fool yourself by trusting a creature that might be using you," replied Bruce without turning. "It's too risky, I won't go that way without looking for an alternative, stay if you're willing to look for it with me." He started to go up the stairs toward the manor. "If you're not, you know where the door is."

His steps echoed as he climbed the stairs. Lena gritted her teeth slightly. "You would have killed me?"

Bruce stopped halfway.

"Before what happened today, if you had believed that killing me was the right thing for the greater good?"

The older man shrugged. "Who knows?" Then he continued up the stairs, not looking back.

* * *

 **Bruce Wayne**

 **10:55 AM**

With the sound of the bookcase closing behind him, Bruce Wayne watched his office heavily lit by the noon light. It seemed a personal insult that the day was so sunny when the darkness inside him did nothing but grew. The photograph of his parents was slightly crooked. With a sigh, Bruce settled it, watching his mother's bright green eyes. Next to his parents's photograph was his wedding photo, Selina with long, wavy hair and he in a tuxedo, looking like a scarecrow compared to Selina's beauty. Her catlike smile seemed to be directed at him, an ironic grin, disappointed. 'Are you going to let those damn mafia destroy the family we've worked so hard to build?'

"Never."

Bruce got out his office, taking long and decisive steps to Helena's room. Her toys were strewn on the floor, her bed was undone and he had to dodge two cats sleeping behind the door. _I have to call the boys._ But first he had to take care of his daughter. Taking a suitcase out of the closet, Bruce filled it with enough clothes, t-shirts, pants, and panties for an indeterminate time. His hand met accidentally with Supergirl doll. After looking at it for a few minutes, Bruce threw it behind his shoulder. _She won't need it anymore._

Bruce took the bag and got out the bedroom, down the stairs to the ground floor. Leaving it on the couch in the main room, he entered the bathroom and opened the hot water of the shower, preparing a bath to take the blood off Helena. ( _"It wasn't me, Wayne. Helena was scared, she ..."_ ) Bruce found himself hitting the bathroom mirror, shattering it into hundreds of pieces. "Shit." He ignored the disaster, his wounded knuckles starting to bleed. I'm sick of blood. The only thing that comforted him was that that sick who had hurt Helena ( _oh God I have failed, I have failed her, I have failed Helena my little girl_ ) was dead. _I wish I had been able to question him first, with a hammer._

"Enough." He had no choice but to take care of that later. _One disaster at a time. I've to take her to a safe place. Then I'll find Selina. And then I'll have those sick locked up for the rest of their life_. He was going to hunt each and every one of them. Bruce stepped out of the bathroom, walking up the stairs as he thought about what he was going to say to his older children. _Jason hasn't..._

 ** _*Ding Dong*_**

Bruce stopped halfway, turning to look at the door as if suddenly a pair of wings had grown to it. _Now what the hell?_ Preparing for a possible fight, Bruce walked to the living room window to see who was knocking on the door. His surprise was not small to find Commissioner Gordon and Detective Renee Montoya, whom he had only seen a couple of times when he worked in collaboration with Batwoman. _Damn._ His deep sense of foreboding became the desperate certainty that his troubles had only begun.

Gordon knocked on the door again. _"Mr. Wayne, it's the police. We want to ask you a few questions."_

For a eternal second Bruce contemplated his two options: disappear or open the door, trying to figure out which of the two was the most convenient. His instinct shouted at him not to open the door, that it could be a trap, it could...

"Mr. Wayne."

 _I've to be sure._

Clenching his teeth, Bruce looked up for one of his wife's cats. Simba was napping on the couch. Moving toward him, Bruce picked up the cat in his arms, waking him up. Using his best relaxed millionaire smile, Bruce walked to the door to open it.

* * *

 **Kate Kane**

 **10:55 AM**

Still in the middle of the chaos they got themselves into, Kate's rational mind told her that Bruce was probably making a mistake. _We can't do this the way we're used to. Not with Selina's life in danger._ But Bruce had always been limited by his strict moral code.

Looking at Kara Danvers, Kate could only see her completely sure that her decision was right. _Or at least, the best one_. And if Lena Luthor was being honest ( _otherwise, she's nutty as a fruitcake_ ) they were facing something they could not beat. Not without a similar power.

 _Shit._

"You understand," said Lena, breaking the awkward silence. "We can't defeat them alone."

"I still have a headache, but that's pretty clear," said Kate, remembering the icy voice that had thrown her against a wall as if she were a doll. ( _'I am Requiem'_ ). "But you realize that Bruce has a point? The thing you want to release could make the problem worse instead of fixing it. What's worse than a evil super god? Two evil super gods."

"She's not evil, Kate, and she's not a goddess." Lena pursed her lips. "Maybe if you talked to her, you could see for yourself."

Kate looked at her in confusion as Kara opened her eyes in a mixture of surprise and concern. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but then closed it in a thin white line.

A small shiver ran down Kate's back, but she forced herself to lift her chin in defiance. "To make me explode if she doesn't like my face?"

"You said you believed in me before. I need you to believe me now," replied Luthor with bright eyes. "We don't know how much time we have left."

The heat grew in Kate's throat, as if she had been drinking the strongest of the vodkas. _What would Maggie do?_ The thought sank into her chest like a knife. _Maggie, they'll surely go after Maggie._ Kate felt the impotence turn into an icy fury in her heart. _We've to stop them or this disaster will never get fixed._

Kate opened her mouth to answer, but before the words came out of her mouth, a disconcerting image appeared behind Kara's head in the security cameras that were seen from the computer. _What? Renée?_ Kara and Lena noticed the expression on her face and followed her gaze, surprised and confused before the two people who were in the room next to Bruce.

The cat must have been with Bruce on the couch. From its point of view, Bruce was sitting in front of Commissioner Gordon and Detective Montoya ( _Renee what the hell are you doing?_ ), talking about something she could not hear well.

Kara went to the computer and turned up the volume. "Who are these people?"

"Commissioner Gordon and Detective Montoya."

"Just what we needed, the police," whispered Lena, touching her medallion as if trying to protect it.

Gordon pressed his lips to the camera. _'So, Mr Wayne, do you know those names?'_

 _'Well, of course I know them. I read them in the newspaper,'_ replied Bruce, trying to fake naivety. _'What happened to those kids was horrible. If I can do anything to help with your investigation, feel free to ask me.'_

 _'You have a nasty bump there,'_ said Renée, pointing to Bruce's hand. _'Did you have an accident or something, Mr Wayne?'_

 _'I ran into one of my wife's cats,'_ answered Bruce. _'God only knows why we've too many. But my children adore them.'_

 _'True, your wife loves animals. How's she? Selina was very kind to me at the last gala in honor of the police.'_

 _'I'm afraid Selina and Helena aren't in town right now,'_ replied (Bruce, watch out) her cousin. _'They went to visit my son Tim to National City. But they're very well, thanks for asking.'_

Alongside Kate, Lena frowned. "He's very good at pretending to be an idiot."

"He's been practicing all his life," said Kate, ignoring her headache. "I don't understand what he's doing. He's letting them question him."

"No, on the contrary," said Kara seriously, her eyes fixed on the scene. "He's questioning them. His eyes are on their bodies, his voice is too sharp, and he's saying those things to measure the cops's reaction and find out what they know." Kara crossed her arms. "That's one of Alex's favorite tricks."

Kate looked at the Kryptonian with a slight surprise. _Of course. The blow to the head must have turned me blind._ Kara was right. It was the only logical explanation, and Bruce's body language only confirmed it _. He's sending false signals_. However, Kate's foreboding kept growing.

Commissioner Gordon put his hands together. _'We hoped you could answer some questions, Mr Wayne.'_

 _'Of course, although I don't know exactly what do you want to know.'_

Detective Montoya sat upright. _'Where were you Wednesday night?'_

"No," murmured Lena beside her. Looking to the left, her eyes fixed on the corpse covered by a sheet.

Bruce frowned. _'Do you think I'm a suspect?'_

 _'Please, Mr. Wayne, answer the question.'_

 _'I was at home, of course.'_

 _'Can anyone corroborate it?'_

 _'My cousin Kate,'_ replied Bruce. _'She had dinner with us.'_

Kate noticed that Gordon and Renee's mouths tightened slightly. To her surprise, Renee even looked away for less than a second. _What the hell is going on?_ Gordon stood, his stance hardening like a stone. _'I'm afraid we'll have to continue this conversation in the police station. Bruce Wayne, you're detained for the murder of the children Bill Denbrough, Richard Tozier, Beverly Marsh, Benjamin Hanscom, Edward Karsbrak, and Stanley Uris. You have the right-...'_

"But what the hell?"/ _'What the hell?'_ said Bruce and Kate at the same time, Bruce's eyes widening with surprise on the monitor and the redhead getting too abruptly out of the chair. The pain in her head made her close her mouth and clench her teeth. Kara's strong hands gripped her by the arm, preventing her from falling.

 _'...attorney. You have the right-... '_

 _'Gordon, have you gone mad? I didn't kill those children!'_ exclaimed Bruce.

 _'Your DNA and Miss Kane's were on the corpses, Bruce,'_ Gordon replied, the wrinkles on his forehead. _'There is no point in lying.'_

Kate's throat closed as if she had forgotten how to breathe. _It's a trap_ , she thought as she stepped back and let go of Kara. _Those damn sons of bitches set us up!_

Montoya pulled out a pair of handcuffs. Kate could see in Bruce's eyes the temptation to escape. _Do it. C'mon. Leave them unconscious. Bruce, don't be stupid!_ But her cousin held no resistance while the detective handcuffed him. _'You make a mistake. Kate and I've not killed anyone, for God's sake!'_

 _'Do you have another logical explanation of why your DNA is in the bodies?'_ asked Gordon. _'I'm all ears.'_

Bruce did not answer.

 _'I thought so.'_

Both policemen grabbed him and pulled him out of sight of the camera, probably toward the door. "NO!" Kate turned and started to run toward the stairs, but before she could reach the door Kara appeared in front of her, blocking the way. Her solemn face was as hard as stone, worried but firm. "Back off!"

"They're going to arrest you too if you go up there, Kate," replied Kara. "That's exactly what Veritas wants. Don't do it."

"Bruce..."

Lena walked toward them, standing next to Kara. "They have evidence against you two for those murders, Kate, and I think I know who put it there," said Lena, looking with hate at Everyman's corpse. "There's physical evidence and your only alibi is that you're Batwoman. We can help Wayne from the outside, but not if you're arrested too."

Kate looked at them both with dilated eyes, enraged. Her mind went blank for less than a second, as she felt a small drop of blood going down from the back of her head to her shoulder. Her gaze locked on Helena's unconscious body, and then she knew there was only one thing she could do _. I won't abandon you, Bruce. Just wait a little._

Kate walked quickly her niece. "Get on the Batmovile C'mon, we don't have all day!" She lifted Helena in her arms and hugged her like a treasure. "We're getting out of here."

* * *

 **Diana of Nowhere**

 **?:?**

Diana later could swear she did not remember climbing the stone wall to get out the pit, only counting on the pain in her body as proof that that had happened. Her lungs burned with the urge to breathe, her skin was covered by a thin layer of sweat and blood spurted from her wounded arm when they finally reached the top of the stone wall. Her inner voice had not stopped shouting _'C'mon, C'mon. I may not have my suit but I'm still a warrior.'_ Therefore, she focused on ignoring the pain and thinking about green eyes, the two pairs of eyes of the two people she longed to see again.

The gray light of the desert made her sight fuzzy for a moment. Alex came out first and then pulled of her healthy arm to help her up. They both gasped on the sand, staining it in red.

"Maggie," said Alex looking around. "Maggie!"

"There," said Diana, pointing to the right, then clenching her teeth to get to her feet.

The detective was inert on the sand, her eyes closed and her breathing slow. Diana let out a gasp as she recognized the figure of Alura lying at her side, her eyes lost in infinity. But the ghost had become translucent, like a slowly disappearing hallucination. Alex dropped down next to her girlfriend, repeating her name and shaking her with urgency. After five eternal seconds Maggie regained consciousness with a gasp, her eyes flying from the ghost to them. "Alex..."

"I'm fine, it's not my blood," she said helping her to her knees. "What happened? Where's Alura?"

"In the sand next to Maggie," said Diana hoarsely. "Did she try to attack you?"

"Yes," the detective replied. "But I touched her and I saw one of her memories, and I think I understand everything." She crawled a little toward the ghost, pulling the hammer away from her and looking at her warily. "You're here because of Alex, aren't you?"

Diana saw the Agent's eyes open with surprise and confusion. The ghost in the sand did not look away from Maggie. _'I sent her to Fort Rozz to make sure she survived,'_ she said weakly. _'She had to live. And I had to wait here to meet her. But Astra never appeared.'_ She turned to look at Alex. _'Her soul must have ended somewhere else. All because of that murderer.'_

"Damn, what's going on!?" asked Alex in frustration.

Maggie scrambled to her feet. "Alura's pending affair was Astra. She's been waiting for her all this time, but you killed her, Alex, and her soul never came here," replied Maggie. "Alura is trapped here forever."

 _'Not forever,'_ said the ghost, smiling. _'The gods of this Earth offered me a deal. I will only be here until the killer dies.'_ Her eyes fixed on Alex. Maggie's face hardened with horror. _'Now you are cursed, Alexandra Danvers. My sister's blood is in your hands and you will never know peace. So enjoy while you can.'_ she said coldly. _'Because when you die, you will not go to heaven or hell. But you shall take my place among the wanderers. And I will meet with my sister in the glory of Rao, to observe Kara until she meets with us, to be together again.'_

"NO!" yelled Maggie angrily.

 _'It would be better if she had died down there,'_ said the ghost with angry eyes. _'Astra deserved better than dying like a beast. You say she considers herself my daughter's sister? If that were true, she would not have killed her aunt, Seer,'_ she said wryly. _'I have paid for the blood that stained my hands. And so will she.'_

"You're wrong!" screamed Maggie fiercely. Alex looked at her in surprise, in a solemn silence. "I don't care what the gods say! Forget that! She's not to blame for all your damn mistakes. It'll never happen. Never, do you understand?"

Alex pressed her lips together and put a hand on her shoulder. "Maggie... what is she saying?"

But the detective lost the words irrevocably when she met her gaze. Diana stepped forward, not taking her eyes off Alura. "Alura says you're cursed for killing her sister."

Alex's dirty face seemed to pale beneath all the blood.

"She says you'll take her place when you die." Diana looked at the ghost with hatred. "And that way she will be free."

"That won't happen," grunted Maggie. "Go to hell. I won't let you hurt Alex."

 _'Oh, how little do you see, Seer,'_ replied the ghost slowly. _'How little you see.'_

Maggie was about to answer, but Alex tugged lightly on her arm. "We have to go," said the Agent coldly.

"Not until she-"

"She can't do anything. It's just a ghost," replied Alex. "If I'm cursed, we'll deal with it later. Now we've to get out of here while we still can." She squeezed her hand. "We'll find a way, I promise. But now we have to go."

Maggie gritted her teeth and looked back at the ghost. Then she moved to the right, picking up the hammer from the sand and squeezing it. "Alex will never take your place."

 _'You have no idea what you are up against,'_ replied the ghost, regaining the color slightly. _'I will see you again very soon.'_

"I'll never see you again," growled Maggie, turning around. Suddenly she stopped, turning his hand into a fist. "Kara deserved something better than you."

 _'And she had Astra,'_ she smiled sadly. _'She was the best part of me.'_

Maggie shrugged. "You've more pending affairs than you think."

Diana followed the detective and the Agent, still looking at the ghost. "She's not going to stop us?"

"She can't," replied Maggie. "She lost her chance."

However, Diana did not look away from the ghost at any moment, not even when Maggie approached the old moldy wood door or when Alex drew her sword again in a tired silence. She did not take her eyes off her motionless figure as Maggie cautiously opened the door, still looking at her when Alex let out a slight sigh of relief. Her eyes finally left Alura only when Maggie pulled her hand, leading her into the moldy door and closing it behind them. The sound of the door closing up was clear and loud, as if with that sound Diana had awakened from a nightmare.

The room was not too big, and the walls were as dark as if they were made of obsidian. But the air smelled different, bittersweet as if it had just rained. _It smells like sunlight_. Diana looked up, where a small blue dot glowed painfully in the distance. _It's the sky. It's beautiful, so beautiful._

"There are some stairs here," said Alex, walking to what looked like moldy stone steps by the wall. "This must be the interior of an extinct volcano, or something like that."

"We should rest first," said Maggie. "Both of you are wounded."

"Not in the legs," replied Diana walking to the stairs, ignoring the pain all over her body. She climbed the first step, but Alex held her hand firmly, though with sweetness.

"That fang on your arm looks bad," said the Agent. "We have to cure it first, it could get infected."

"If we remove it, it'll get worse. We have no way to sew or bandage it," replied the brunette. "This can wait until the top."

"Do you forget that I'm a doctor? You could bleed out," said Alex as if talking to a little girl. "I'll make you a tourniquet for now. Maggie, please, lend me your belt."

If Diana had not been so tired, perhaps she could have argued. But she doubted that it would have been of any use, not with Alexandra Danvers. _And although I don't want to admit it, she's right._ So Diana sat down on the step and waited patiently for Alex and Maggie take care of her arm. Removing the fang from the wound felt like a stab, her warm blood coming out and mingling with Cerberus's. _All this pain is good, it means my nerves are okay. It means that I'm alive._

She looked up at the distant blue dot above her head _. Missy. Lena. I'm coming._ She took a deep breath, filling her lungs with the sweet moist air. _I'm coming, My Sun and Stars._

* * *

 **Kara Zor-L Grant**

 **4:25 PM (Current Local Time in Scotland)**

Karen stopped resisting after six minutes of struggle, the grip of the guards harder than steel. _I got to get rid of the green thing._ If she managed to recover even a little of her powers, she could escape, find a way to get out of there. She could not allow them to send her to that sunless Earth or she would be hopelessly vulnerable _. I can't let them erase my memory. I can't forget them. I can't, fuck!_ Karen shook her head violently inside the leaden helmet, growling like a furious lion. _I'm going to throw all these morons to the nearest ravine._

At a certain moment, the two guards led her down some long stairs. Then they walked about twenty yards down the corridor, down some even longer stairs, dozens and dozens of meters underground, so deeply that Karen feared that the earth could swallow them all ( _I can't let them I can't let them I can't let them_ ). A slight cramp in her neck made her grit her teeth. Without her powers, the metal helmet felt heavy on her head, the oxygen inside hot and suffocating. Karen was about to fall from the stairs, but a strong yank of the guard on her left kept her in balance.

The stairs ended seven minutes later, when Karen's feet stopped on a smooth, slippery surface, as if made of glass. The guard on her left released her for seven seconds to open the door, Karen guessed, and then pulled her up with a roughness that made her grit her teeth. _This bastard will die first_. Karen growled in anger, the hate growing so fast inside her that it threatened to blow her up.

The guards made her walk another twenty yards, before forcing her to kneel on the floor. It was very cold, as if the heat were unexistent in that place. Karen felt the hands of one of the guards in the lead helmet, unlocking the lock to remove it. Cold air hit her hot face as she gasped to inhale all the oxygen her lungs could hold. Her eyes widened in the dim light. But as she took a full look around, her throat dried and the cold stuck to her back like a ghost trying to get inside her body.

Blue fire torches lit up the huge cave, so huge that Karen could hear her own breathing bounce off the walls and come back as an echo. The macabre shadows danced on the walls and on the ceiling, mocking devils curious for the girl from the dead world. There were a lot of strange stone arches all along the walls. Each was covered in a brilliant blue smoke, as if the sky and the sea had been mixed on the other side. In all but one that did not shine or protrude, instead it was dark as the most infinite nothing. _Where I am? Good Rao, where am I?_

The sound of a chirping laugh made her turn her head. Before Karen's eyes, a very old woman in a blue tunic looked at her with luminous, calculating eyes, a small sharp smile on her lips. Her kind grandmother-like appearance would have been perfect had it not been for her shark teeth. Karen believed, for less than a second, to be the victim of a hallucination.

"Undoubtedly a magnificent specimen." The old woman approached and knelt in front of Karen, her face crumpled inches away. "There are so many things I could do with a Kryptonian." Her skinny finger brushed Powergirl's chin, causing an unpleasant itch all over her face. "What a waste."

"You'll have to kill me first."

"We don't kill what we can control." She stood up again. "And sometimes we're compassionate enough to repair." She walked away from Karen. "You'll know it on Earth-19."

Before her eyes countless lines of blue light scattered on the ground beneath where Karen was kneeling. Bright as liquid fire, but cold as little icy lakes. The blue lines covered the whole floor, forming circles around it, one in front of each of the portals, except the one as dark as a curtain of darkness. Within each circle, more blue lines formed Roman numerals. A knot formed in her stomach as she counted the portals _. IV, V, VI._ Her eyes finally stopped in the dark portal, letting out a sob as she understood why it looked like a tomb. _XV._ This portal was the tomb of everything she had known and loved. _Catherine. Adam. Carter. My friends._

"Your world was wonderful," said the old woman with shark teeth. "It's a shame that you're not willing to avenge it. You could kill the Gap with a blow from your hand. It's not like you have something to lose."

"Shut up!" cried Karen. "You can't manipulate me like a toy. Not me, bitch. You're not going to get away with it."

"You won't even remember your name in an hour, Kara of Earth-15," replied the old woman. "You're Earth-19's responsibility now, anyway."

"HAHAHAHA." Karen could not help letting out a laugh that rose from the depths of her soul. She laughed, still staring at the strange old woman, who only raised an eyebrow in curiosity at her outburst. When Powergirl could finally control her hysterical laughter, she took a deep breath. "You're all going to feel so stupid." She sighed. "When you realize you should have killed me."

The old woman shrugged, a sharp smile on her face whose meaning Karen could not decipher. "Our head knows better."

The old woman and the guards remained silent for the next few minutes. Karen watched them in silence, while they kept their eyes fixed on portal number XIX, ignoring her as if she had become a piece of furniture. _They're expecting something_. Karen began to feel her heart pounding desperately in her chest, a cold sweat soaking her forehead. She recognized herself on the verge of a panic attack, trembling slightly. _They won't take away my memory. They won't. I can't forget them. Adam's smile. Carter's laughter. Catherine's eyes. I won't allow them to be taken away from me. I'd rather die._ Her teeth creaked inside her mouth, her nails digging into her palms. Her eyes moved toward portal number XV. The darkness on the other side seemed almost inviting, like a quiet night sea. _And they will be on the other side. Everything will be there, and all this will be just a nightmare._ But she shook her head, her eyes wet with the knowledge that the fantasy had long since died.

In the portal number XIX, the blue spirals began to shake as if a strong wind was blowing on the other side. A bulging shape began to materialize inside. A hooded figure, dressed all in dark blue, the very incarnation of the angel of death. It was so thin that Karen knew it must be a woman. She could feel her hidden eyes examining her, as if she were a small exotic animal. Karen gave her a defiant look, lifting her chin. The dark figure slowly turned her head toward the old woman. "19 sends respects," she spoke in a deep, almost robotic voice, but unmistakably feminine.

The old woman simply nodded. "38 suggests erasing her memory immediately. She-"

"Don't bother, 38 has already sent a Wraith with all the details about the Kryptonian from Earth-15."

"Alright then."

Karen felt like miles away, as if she were watching everything from behind a glass. _I can't let her take me!_ The guards were completely armored, they were only Rao knew several meters underground, and she was handcuffed and weakened. _There must be a way! Think, Kara, think!_

Her eyes fell on the guards' belts, where that toxic material called Kryptonite shone. Her heart stopped for an eternal second ( _Merciful Rao_ ) when she realized what she had to do. Her throat went dry as if she had swallowed sand. But after three milliseconds, her vital signs normalized, feeling the pitiful certainty that it was all she could do to escape. _And what do I've to lose anyway?_

The hooded woman looked at the guards. "Bring her here. We're leaving."

They began to approach Karen with steady pace. The blonde girl had a fleeting memory of brighter colors and happier, beloved faces smiling from the depths of her memory. ( ** _*A little paper boat sailing in the creek...*_** ) Karen smiled as the guards stopped at her side, holding her tightly in their arms and forcing her to get up. Her smile widened ( ** _*...shipwrecking by violent winds*_** ). But before they could pull her to make her walk, her handcuffed hands swiveled to the taller guard's belt, taking the Kryptonite knife with a fierce grunt and using his second of bewilderment to give him a strong kick in his legs, making him fall like a child's toy. The other guard reacted quickly and grabbed her by the hair, trying to take the knife. Karen raised her right leg, trapping his with the chains and making him fall as his partner, kicking him in the helmet ( _Fuck you!_ ) to stun him. The Kryptonian stepped back quickly, still looking at the guards, the old woman, the hooded, with feverish and furious eyes, pointing them with the green knife.

"You should drop that," the old woman said mockingly. "It's extremely toxic to you."

"I know!" laughed Karen.

Before the old woman's perplexed eyes, Powergirl turned the knife to herself with her right hand, and sank the blade into her left wrist with a cry of pain. The blood gushed out, black as if it had frozen inside her body. Karen heard a _'Shit!_ ' and many hurried footsteps, but it was late. With her blood and her wound, her wrist was slippery and narrow enough for the left handcuff to slip abruptly, as quickly as possible. It felt like plucking out her hand. By the time the first guard had reached her, her already free hand had already turned into a fist, impacting against his head with all her strength. It was enough. The terrible pain in her hand was worth it when she heard the crack of his head exploding inside his helmet, like an egg breaking inside a safe. The other guard drew his weapon. Karen ignored him and finished releasing her other hand, with the rush of adrenaline. **_*BANG*_** The shot in her shoulder felt as if someone had sank a long needle into her flesh. Karen leaned down and took the long chain that bound her feet with both hands, growling in frustration at the slippery of the bloody metal.

The pain spread all over her body, but the chains finally gave way. **_*BANG*_** She let out a gasp as she felt the green bullet grazing her neck. "Poor jerk." Her speed was seriously weakened, but still the guard could not flee when Powergirl flung herself at him before he could shoot again, taking his head gently and twisting it ( ** _*Brack*_** ) like it was made of plastic.

"You stupid creature!" screamed the old woman. "Stop! Stop or you'll bled to death! You can't-!"

 ** _*Brack*_** Breaking the old woman's neck felt like breaking a wooden wand, or crushing a giant bug. The old lady opened her mouth in a mute cry, a dying shark exhaling her last breath. Karen tore off a piece of her clothes and used it to cover the hemorrhage of her wrist, releasing the corpse and kicking it away. Her ears had been attentive to the hooded woman, expecting an attack from which to defend herself. But she did not move before the massacre around her. "She'll be very pissed off when she get back," she said, pointing to the old woman.

"She's dead," replied Karen, slowly as if she were talking to an idiot.

"Goodness never stays dead for a long time. Not even the Devil wants her company," the woman replied. "You're too weak and you've nowhere to escape."

"I'm not too weak to kill you."

"Why don't you just do it then?"

"Because you can get me out of here," she replied coldly. "Your life, in exchange for my freedom."

"Impossible," she said. "I don't fear death. You can't threaten me or blackmail me. "

"So be it then."

It was only the adrenaline what propelled her forward, her healthy hand turning into a fist to shatter her neck. The hooded pulled a bright green knife in less than a second, but Karen expected something like that, and dodged the attack with her weakened speed. The green bullets inside her body twisted like insects devouring her flesh. The hooded's knee struck her belly, but Karen felt nothing but mild discomfort. _No matter how good you are_. She gave her a slap that sent her flying, spinning in the air and landing painfully on the ground. Karen leaned carelessly at her side, ignoring the alarming amount of blood flowing out her body, and the strange feeling of physical pain after so long. _You'll never be able to defeat a Kryptonian, not even one who hasn't seen the sun in a long time._ Her right hand closed around her neck, staining her blue clothes with red, while her other hand took the knife and threw it away like an old toy. The hooded woman tried to reach for her belt, but Karen twisted her wrist with a sudden movement, getting a slight groan of pain. "Last chance: how do I get out of here?"

"You can't get out," gasped the hooded. "You have no way out."

"Where do the portals lead?"

"Other Earths, but in your state we would subdue you and you know it," growled the hoarse voice. "Veritas never loses."

"What about the portal to my Earth?" Karen made her stand up, gritting her teeth and refusing to moan. I won't last very long. "What would happen if I cross it?" she asked, taking her by the neck and forcing her to see the black portal.

"Your Earth no longer exists, Karen Starr. That portal doesn't lead to anywhere," replied the hooded. "You'd appear directly in the Nothingness. Maybe you'd die right away, or maybe you'd die slowly. But your Earth is gone and it'll never come back," she said in a low voice. "Come with me to my Earth. Let us erase your memory. You can start over, like a normal human."

"I don't trust you!" yelled Karen with hatred, shaking the human with frustration. "You all are crazy! You're trying to destroy the little's left of me! I won't let you take away the only thing I got left, even if it's just pain! Damn it!" _I'm going to break your neck like a loaf of bread!_ Karen thought, blind in anger. "If I die, it'll be like Kara Zor-L Grant."

"Let me take off my hood," said the woman, slowly lifting her good hand. "And maybe we can talk face to face."

The grip on her neck tightened slightly in warning, but Karen did not stop her as that gloved hand lowered the hood. A head of wavy brown hair appeared before her eyes. Karen blinked, breathing heavily for the pain in her body and in her heart. "No," moaned the Kryptonian, releasing her neck, her hand trembling. "Miss Danvers?"

"Not the one you know." She turned slowly, hands up. Her face was the same, but her hair covered her right eye, and a tiny scar protruded from the tip of her chin. "She was your boss, wasn't she?"

 _And my friend,_ Karen thought with a lump in her throat. _Like an older sister_. She shook her head. "She would never be a killer."

"But now she's gone," said the woman with her boss's face. "Veritas saves the lives that you're willing to let die. _We_ keep the Multiverse safe. _We_ 're the only ones strong enough to pay the price. We didn't kill your world, Powergirl, but Lena from Earth-38. The Gap." She approached slowly, without breaking eye contact. "But you're still our responsibility. Come to my Earth, start again. You don't have to live with your pain, neither you have to die." She twisted her mouth. "I'm not the Alexandra Danvers you knew. My name's Xandra Danvers, and yes, you don't know me. I'm not a millionaire nor work at D-Corp, but part of your friend lives in me and you know it." Her eyes seemed sincere, almost as bright as those of the person she had admired. "You're losing a lot of blood, Kara. Come with me so I can take you out the Kryptonite bullets."

Karen smiled slightly, letting the tears flow freely across her face, with no desire to restrain them anymore. "Thank you for letting me see your face," she said, feeling increasingly weak. "But you're wrong: you're nothing like Miss Danvers, Xandra. You're not her. You're just a monster that has her face." _Just a little more_. "I'll never go with you, Xandra Danvers."

The double tried to throw herself for the green knife that lay forgotten on the floor, but Karen reached out quickly and grabbed her hair, shaking her and throwing her away. "Don't get up." But she stood up, and Karen knew that at any moment her own body would stop responding and then it would all be over. Miss Danvers's double tried to bring her hand to her belt again, but Karen used her weakened heat vision in her hand, burning her glove and getting a loud groan of pain. "Enough!" And for a second that lasted an eternity she could see the real Alexandra, the brave and intelligent woman she had learned so much from, in her dark eyes. Unable to use her speed again ( _don't faint, don't faint, don't faint_ ), Karen flew towards her and grabbed her by the neck, lifting her off the ground.

The pain was on the double's face when she spoke. "You're not going to kill me."

 ** _*Pum*_** The punch on her back turned her face into a mute cry, her pupils shrinking so much that they almost disappeared. Xandra spat blood, splattering Karen's pants more than they already were. The Kryptonian released her and the woman from Earth-19 fell to the ground, panting like a fish out of the water, her hand trembling. "W-What?"

"Let's leave your destiny in the hands of that thing you worship. You've six minutes for someone to find you and save you, before you die from your internal wounds. If you live, you won't hurt anyone again, because I've damaged your spine. And if you die, may Rao have pity on your soul." She turned, advancing slowly toward the black portal that was between the XIV and XVI numbers. "I'm done here."

"Come back," the woman whispered on the floor as Karen walked away. "Don't…"

But the Kryptonian no longer heard her, smiling genuinely for the first time in weeks, a sense of peace growing in her heart as she realized that finally she was free. That at last she could go home. _It's over._ She could no longer feel the pain in her body, instead she felt light, like walking asleep to the place where she could wake up. _Aunt Astra, I've fought to the end, as I promised you I'd do so many years ago. But now I'm going home._ The dark swirls of the dead world seemed to dance before her eyes, ghosts playing merrily in their own world. _I will…_

The black became the most intense of the blues in the second she touched the portal.

A cry of surprise and pain got stuck in her throat. She was trapped in a frozen sun, an incomprehensibly immense energy that absorbed her as if it wanted to eat her alive. _No, what's this!?_ Karen managed to think before a lethal combination of noises and images entered her brain like a hammer trying to destroy her skull. ( ** _*A Russian girl giving her a red scarf* *A hard-eyed Kal leaving her in an orphanage* *An incredibly beautiful green-eyed brunette sitting on her lap, saying 'That's a lie, Kara. I've never had a home until I met you. You're my home; the only reward I want. I don't want any thing else. I only want you.'*_** ) _WHAT'S THIS!?_ She was sure she bit her tongue, holding on to that new pain to avoid going crazy. The images increased speed, faster, faster, faster, faster, fAsTeR, until all Karen could see and hear around her was a blinding white and an electronic buzz. Any kind of rational thought left her mind. And the last thing she felt before losing touch with reality was a pair of skeletal arms surrounding her waist and pulling her towards infinity.

* * *

 **Lena**

 **11:59 AM**

Lena had always considered herself an exemplary driver, but she would be lying if she said that she was completely sure of what she was doing with the world's most dangerous car, driving at full speed along an old unpaved road, following indications of a woman with a brain cuntusion. Outside Gotham the sun shone again, hurting her eyes, but she forced herself to not look away from the desert road in front of them. "Where we go?"

Kate looked slightly absent, pressing the wound on her head with her right hand. "Metropolis, to find the doctor."

"What doctor?" asked Kara in the backseat, next to an unconscious Helena.

"Gregory House, Princeton Plaisboro Hostpital," whispered Kate. "His real name's Hugh Laurie. Lillian tried to kill him years ago. He was on the medical team that..." She growled in pain. "...treated Lutessa."

That name seems familiar to me. "Don't strain yourself, Kate, your wound could get worse. Kara, I know that name from somewhere."

"Diana was in that hospital when I burned her le- Argggg." Kara rubbed her forehead hard.

Lena looked at her with concern. "Kara?"

"I'm okay. It's just a migr-AAAAAHHHHHHH!"

Lena horrified and stepped on the batmovil's brake, avoiding bumping into a fence for a few centimeters. Kara's scream cracked the windshield glass, strong and painful as a hammer against her eardrums. "KARA!"

"Open the door!" screamed Kara, holding her head. "OPEN THE DOOR! NOW!"

Lena did what she told her and pressed a button on the board. Kara pushed the car door as if it were made of cardboard, falling on the dirt road. Lena took off her belt frantically and got out of the car too. Terror hit her stomach like a fist. Kara twisted in pain uncontrollably, holding her head as if trying to protect herself from invisible blows. Lena saw with horror that tears of desperation fell from her eyes. Following her impulse she tried to kneel beside her, but the blonde crawled away from her. "NO!"

"Kara, what's wrong!?"

"He has me! It's hurting me! It hurts too much! AAHhaahaAH!" Kara scratched the earth frantically. "LET ME GOOOO!" She attacked with her heat vision a tree on the other side of the road, setting it on fire. Lena gritted her teeth and threw herself at her, holding her with all her human strength. It was like hugging a brick wall. Kara squirmed uncontrollably, hitting the floor, creating small craters.

"What's going on!?"

 **He has her** , answered the Monitor in her mind. **All of them.**

"Help her! Do something!"

 **Do what I say.**

Lena felt the Monitor enter her body as had happened before. But this time it was different, since she did not disappear into her own memory, but remained conscious all the time. They were sharing her body, blending into one person. And blinking rapidly, Lena could see Kara completely. _Oh God._ She could see her brain, her heart, her lungs, her three kidneys. She could see her soul. And the soul of her precious Kryptonian was writhing in pain, as if an invisible hand wanted to tear it from her body _. He's breaking her!_ **Hug her. Do not let Him take her.**

Lena clung to Kara's soul as if trying to embrace a ghost. Her soul trembled like a little child crying with terror. Lena held her firmly, holding her in place, trying to reassure her like a lion protecting her cubs.

"Y **o** u **'** r **e** s **a** f **e** ," said Lena and the Monitor. " **H** e **w** i **l** l **n** e **v** e **r** h **u** r **t** y **o** u. **N** e **v** e **r**."

Kara gasped for air, finally remaining still in Lena's arms. The Monitor left as suddenly as She entered, and Lena's vision returned to normal. Only light, colors, and Kara in her arms. The blonde looked at her with absent eyes, her face moist and blushing.

"Kara," said Lena, squeezing her shoulder and lifting her face. "Kara, can you hear me? Kara!"

"Karen Starr," she whispered. "Power-..."

But before finishing the sentence, she fainted in her arms.

* * *

 **The Cat in the dark**

 **When she regained consciousness**

Despite not knowing where she was, Selina was absolutely certain it was not in Scotland. She had been in the country three times, once to steal the famous diamond Pink Panther, another time to catch an international killer, and one more time at a Barenaked Ladies concert. The air of that country smelled of rainwater and wet earth, while the air around her smelled of sunlight and burnt sugar. In addition, in her semiconscious state, she was able to hear some words from her captors, and they did not speak English, but a sonorous and slow language like a romantic song.

She did not know how much time had passed until she finally regained consciousness, the first thing she saw being a torch burning on the wall, lighting the darkness around her _. Dammit_. Selina pushed herself up, feeling an horrible pain in her gut, as if her intestines were filled with liquid fire. The place was dark, small, and dirty, a cell that looked out of some old medieval castle. _Of course, no decent lunatic can have a clean and welcoming secret lair._

"Are you okay?" asked a voice to her left. Selina turned, narrowing her eyes to see in the dim light. In the cell across the hall, a young dark-skinned woman was watching her sitting on the floor. "They must have hit you very hard. You've been unconscious for twenty minutes."

 _Damn, I'm getting old_ , thought Selina, shaking her head.

"Do you remember what happened to you?" the woman asked.

"Someone hit me on the head," replied Selina. "Where the hell are we?"

"Under ground, but I'm not sure," the woman said. "The people who brought me here haven't been back in a long time. A woman comes here once a day to leave food and water and leaves, without speaking. You're the first voice I hear in a long time." She looked at her, trying to smile. "I'm M'gann."

"M'gann Morzz?" asked Selina, crawling to the bars, trying to see her better. "Miss Martian?"

"Do you know me?"

"My family and I have been looking for you all over the world. I'm Catwoman. Supergirl and Lena Luthor are with me. Do you know where Winslow Schott is? J'onn J'onzz?"

"No," said the woman staring at her, trying to decide if she was telling the truth. "A young blond-haired man took Winn. He could move things with his mind, I couldn't stop him."

"Jason Teague," replied Catwoman. "M'gann, is there anything you can remember? Anything could be useful."

"He had a Scottish accent. I remember he said he wanted to kill Kara," replied M'gann. "But Kara's strong. She has to be fine, tell me she's fine."

"Kara and Lena are fine. They narrowly escaped. The rest of National City... Much of it exploded, M'gann. Many people died." She took a deep breath. "James Olsen and Mon-El of Daxam passed away in the attack. I'm so sorry."

M'gann let out a sad sigh, averting her gaze. "He didn't deserve this."

Selina nodded respectfully. "I know the prince of Daxam was your friend. Kara told me he had proper funeral."

"I meant James, he was a good man," replied M'gann quietly. "Mon-El was just my co-worker. He was an useless idiot, but not even a fool like he deserves to die like that." M'gann bit his lip. "I'm so sorry. In my condition my hormones takes out the worst of me. "

"Are you still…?"

"My son is fine. Nobody has dared to hurt him yet," she replied embracing her belly. "I know they want to hurt him... But they won't."

"Have you tried to escape?" asked Selina.

"My cell is made of Thanagarian steel, so I can't break the door," said M'gann. "I've tried calling my friends telepathically, but it's useless. Something blocks my powers."

A door opened in the distance, followed by the sound of footsteps approaching. Selina stood, determined to be strong even though she felt tired and hurt. With any luck, they won't kill me. However, neither Teague nor Tess Mercer appeared before her eyes, but two women dressed as if they were part of an ancient Greek army. One had dark skin and short hair, and the other was bald, with bright blue eyes in a scarred face. The two women approached her cell, studying her carefully.

"It's been over two thousand years..." said the dark-skinned woman. "And the women of the Man's world are still wimps."

"I'd be much more lethal out of this cell, trust me," replied Selina defiantly.

"We know," the bald woman replied. "We know everything about you, Selina Kyle. I wish we could talk in better circumstances, but times are hard in the Republic of Themyscira."

"Amazons?" sighed Selina, arching an eyebrow. "You look taller on TV."

The bald woman shrugged. "It would be easier for you if you did not try to provoke us."

"Cut it out, you talk like a cheap villain. It's annoying," Catwoman grunted. "Don't bother to torture me or threaten me. I will not tell you anything about Lena Luthor."

"We aren't interested in Diana's bastard. That's not our business," said the brown-skinned Amazon. "However, one of those foreigners has stolen something we want to recover. At all costs." She looked her up and down. "You should talk."

The bald Amazon took a step forward, looking at her coolly. "Where is the Dagger of Hera?"


	39. Trinity: The Equation of War

**The ambassador**

 **5:40 AM (Current local time in Greece)**

Charis's eyes filled with tears as she approached the edge of the boat and spotted land, needing all her self-control to not let happiness make her lose her composure. It has changed so much and at the same time nothing has changed, despite the millennia that've passed. She knew that currently the country where she was born was called Greece, even though it would always be Ἑλλάς, Hellás, for her. Unlike Alkyone, she could still remember her childhood. She had taken the precaution of writing it down when she realized that she was beginning to forget. She did not remember any face, but she did rememer names, places, smells. And if she closed her eyes and concentrated with enough strength she could almost remember the maddening passion of love. _But that was in another life._

She heard Philomela approach from behind, her steps almost inaudible against the wood of the prow, standing beside her. Charis turned to look at her blind partner. She had not put on her blindfold since she stabbed their former princess, and the darkness of her empty sockets had become a regular sight. "We are almost there."

"Does the wind tell you that?"

"Your heart, actually. You are seeing land, aren't you?"

"I can see it in the distance. There are very big buildings. I did not expect them to be that big," she said quickly, crossing her arms. "Myrto would be very happy to be here."

"Her sacrifice was not in vain. If we are here, it's thanks to her and Menalippe." She approached the edge, leaning on the railing. "They are at peace. Their fight is over, and they will be supporting us from the Elysian Fields."

"Alkyone should have come," she sighed. "She was chosen by the Gods, not me."

"She's not free yet, Charis," said Philomela, without moving. "You are in charge of our new life, you will take us where no one else could ever take us. You are our future. Alkyone still has to get rid of our past before joining us."

"I don't think we have a future until we find the Dagger, Philomela. We will not be safe until then, but we will not make the same mistake as Hippolyta. This world is ours, to protect it, and live in it. Greece is only the first step." She inhaled deeply the salty air of the sea, never looking away from the spot on the horizon. "After all, we have all the time in the world."

"We will not need it with the Gods on our side." Philomela smiled slightly. "Not even the bastard is a rival."

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **10:53 PM**

A painful buzzing sounded in the distance, diffused and watery, the ghost of an echo that was lost in the infinity of space. Kara took a couple of seconds to win the battle against unconsciousness, her body slightly shaking with ( _this is a dream cold never hurts me can't hurt me_ ) cold. Her throat felt dry and her head did not stop spinning, as if she were trapped inside a giant washing machine.

"Lena," she said softly. _Am I talking or thinking I can't hear myself I don't know I don't know_. "Lena, where are you? Lena..."

"Kara." She felt a delicate hand over her forehead _. Where did she come from?_ "Easy, I'm here. You're safe. We're alright."

"I can't see," she said, trying to control her panic. "I can't smell, I can't hear, what's going on?"

"Shhh," murmured her girlfriend's voice, kneeling to wrap her in her arms. "Take a deep breath, darling. I need you to count to a hundred slowly. Everything will be fine, I promise." Kara felt her rough lips kissing her forehead. "Count with me, Kara... One, two, three, four, five, six..."

She did it, just concentrating on their voices until they both reached number fifty, when the timid sounds of a nearby nature reached her ears; countless birds, insects, small mammals, hearts beating. The smell of wet trees and fire did not take much longer to appear and wake up her nostrils, making Kara wonder where the hell they were. Finally she was able to open her eyes, blinking slowly and finding everything dark around her at first. It took them a couple of seconds to take in the light, and when they did, Kara found herself facing Lena's parted lips, still wrapped in her arms, as she had been countless nights in what seemed like another life, when they all were happy and the world smiled at them. Lena smiled at her, stroking her cheek and kissing her lips. "Here's my Woman of Steel."

Reluctantly, Kara looked away from her, studying her surroundings. They seemed to be in the middle of a forest, lit only by the light of a weak fire in an improvised camp. Kate was lying motionless on a sleeping bag, two feet from the Batmobile and behind Lena. She squinted, checking the wound on her head. Her state of concussion had not changed since the last time she had seen her, and Kara doubted she could improve soon without proper rest. _She could get worse if we don't do something_. A pang of panic seized her when she did not see Helena, but she was relieved to find the little girl inside the vehicle, sleeping in the backseat.

"What time is it?" asked Kara hoarsely. "How long have I been out?"

"It's almost eleven," replied Lena softly. "Kate fainted four hours ago, when I had to dodge a couple of trees to avoid the police."

"We're running away from the police?"

"They're watching the roads, I went into this forest to avoid them," said Lena, helping her sit down, putting her arm around her shoulders and pulling her close. Kara looked at her hands, strange and unusually small, stained with blood and dirt, her perfect nails broken and skin cracked. _My Lena..._ Kara took her hand and caressed it.

"Kara, can you tell me what you remember?"

Kara released her hand immediately, for fear of squeezing her too much. Instead, she put her hands on her own knees and did not take her eyes off her dirty knuckles, trying to relax enough to remember everything. "We were in the car talking about that doctor, I remember I... Everything started to hurt, it was as if my bones were being ripped out." Kara pressed her lips together trying to avoid a sob, frustrated when she failed to. "That damn thing didn't want to kill me, It wanted to drive me crazy."

"Easy," said Lena stroking her hair. Kara forced herself to concentrate on the pleasure and love of her hand against her scalp, the sound of her breathing, the beating of her heart a few inches from hers. "I don't want to pressure you, Puppy, I can't even imagine how horrible it was. You don't have to talk about that now."

"No, I have to say it now. I'll forget it later, I know." _My mind will try to block the pain, I can't allow it._ "He was there, Lena. Sometimes in the middle of a light so bright that I couldn't see. Sometimes in the middle of the darkness, like, as if he were waiting for me to look at him. I didn't, because if I had looked at him, if I had looked at him..."

Lena put her index finger on her lips, wiping the tears that fell from her eyes. "Breathe, Kara, take your time," she said squeezing her hug. "He can't hurt you, I promise you. I won't allow it. I've got you." Lena rubbed her nose against hers. Kara stared at those beautiful green eyes like the juiciest apple, letting the world disappear for a minute to focus on Lena. "I've got you."

Kara remained motionless for many seconds, giving herself courage until Lena's presence managed to overcome her fresh painful memories.

"He was sitting in the middle of this place, in a chair that seemed to absorb the light. I wasn't the only one there, there were... there were a lot of girls around me. I couldn't see them, but I could... I felt them there." She swallowed hard. "A girl was at the foot of the chair, in front of that."

Lena squeezed her shoulder. "The Anti-Monitor?"

"Yes," said Kara, relieved that she did not have to say that name. "He was hurting her, but it was like he was doing it to me, Lena. To all of us. I felt all her pain, and then only darkness."

Kara sighed, relieved to have finished. She wished she could control herself better and take away the concern from Lena's eyes. But even though she tried, the pain and horror still clung to her as if they wanted to get inside her skin. "I don't know how long I was there."

Lena bit her injured lip, extracting a drop of blood. "Thirty seconds."

"What?" she asked incredulously. "It can't be, it was hours."

Lena shook her head slowly. "Kara, you got out of control in the middle of the road. It was the Monitor who brought you back." Lena opened her mouth to say something else, but closed it again. "It was horrible, you were suffering a lot and for a moment I thought..." Lena wiped the blood that ran down her chin. "I thought I was going to lose you."

Kara hugged her, hiding her face in her neck, wishing she could hold her with all her strength. "Never, Potsticker. Never."

* * *

 **The Young Woman with too many traumas**

 **11:23 PM**

It took thirty minutes for Kara to regain her composure and her mind could stop going back again and again to horror and fear. Or at least that was what she wanted Lena to believe, since Kara doubted that she could ever forget all about her experience in that place. Lena seemed to be sure ( _for yourself or because your new friend told you Lena how much of your thoughts are really yours now?_ ) that place could not be on any Earth, nor in outer space. Kara watched her silently, her eyes fixed on the medallion shining against her chest.

"Maybe that place was hell," muttered Kara, hugging her knees. "It felt like it was."

Her girlfriend pressed her lips together, rising to her feet with a grunt of exhaustion. "Wait for me here."

Lena walked towards the Batmobile, being very careful not to step on Kate. Only then did Kara notice she did not look tired in the least, as if she had not been dealing with three unconscious people for the last few hours. The Kryptonian stared at the faint flames of the fire in front of her, feeling guilty and anguished at having been a burden to her girlfriend instead of a help.

To her surprise, Kara immediately recalled one of her first dates with Lena two years ago, when she still could not believe that the kindest, most intelligent and attractive woman of the human race was interested in dating her. Kara remembered that day had been the season premiere of that zombie show Lena liked so much, even though she constantly complained about its plot holes. Kara, who preferred to avoid violent shows and enjoyed comedies more, had said that it would be impossible for humanity to survive a zombie apocalypse, or at least America, because they were too accustomed to the comforts of modern life, such as electricity or pizza. Lena assured her, completely serious, that she could survive in a zombie apocalypse. ( _'Lex and I had everything planned and even made a survival manual together when I was ten.'_ )

She noticed too late that Lena had returned, sitting next to her with paper and a pencil in her hands. "What are you thinking about?" she asked curiously.

Kara let out a small laugh. "It's absurd, but I can't stop thinking about your zombie survival manual," she said with a shrug.

Lena pressed her lips lightly. "Don't even mention it to me. I'm still upset they killed Denise. Winn and I stopped watching The Walking Dead long ago because of that." She sighed. "Rule number one: never ship a blonde and a brunette. One of them always dies."

Kara looked at her girlfriend with unbelieving eyes, before letting out a laugh that felt like a medicinal balm for her heart. "Blondes and brunettes are so cliché," she said laughing, taking Lena's hand to make the feeling of well-being last a little longer. "What's that for?"

Lena laid the piece of paper on her knee, beginning to draw small circles around a larger circle. "A map." She drew fifty-two small circles, writing numbers inside each one. Then she quickly painted the empty space between the circles of black. Below the drawing, Lena drew flames and ugly creatures that looked like crocodiles. "On Themyscira my mother told me that Hell is part of a distant dimension, where some souls end up by accident. It doesn't match the place you described." Lena pointed to the circle numbered thirty-eight. "We're here." Then she drew an arrow, a lightning bolt, and a small bird in the first circle. "Your friends are here." She drew a large cross on circle number fifteen. "And this Earth doesn't exist anymore... I never investigated much more about the Multiverse."

"Earth-2 has a city full of gorillas. Earth-3 is cheesy and kinda ridiculous. There's no coffee on Earth-19, and it's always night. But I don't think any of that is useful." Kara shook her head. "I'm sorry. I met a friend of Barry's a while back, Harry Wells. He knows a lot about the Multiverse, I wish I'd asked him more."

"Don't worry," said Lena stroking her arm. "The important thing is this place." She pointed to the big white circle in the middle of the others. "This is where the Anti-Monitor is. I could see this place when I was unconscious, from the Monitor's prison, which should be..." She drew a small square on the top of the paper. "Here. We have to get her out of here."

Kara sighed. "If only I could remember something else..."

Lena moved restlessly in place, biting the inside of her cheek with blank eyes.

"Lena?"

"You said some things while you were unconscious." She looked at the fire. "I thought you were delirious, but it seemed you were talking to someone, or many people at the same time." Lena looked at her. "Don't you remember that?"

Kara shook her head. "What did I say?"

"You first said a name, Karen Starr." Kara shook her head, making it clear that this name meant nothing to her. "Then you named your cousin."

"Kal?"

Lena nodded. "You said 'Kal, don't leave me please, we just have each other'. You seemed very sad." Lena took her hand. "Then things got weird and you started talking in Russian."

Kara blinked a couple of times, wondering if Lena was teasing her. "I don't speak Russian."

"Well, I do, I studied it in Ireland. You said 'Sister, give me back my scarf'."

Kara rubbed her brow tiredly. "I said something else?"

"Something about kissing a horse."

"Wha-? You know what? I don't remember any of that. I must have been delirious," she replied a little sulkily.

Lena smiled sadly, moving the pencil between her fingers. Kara could hear her breathing deeply. "You also repeated a name."

Kara looked at her with intrigue.

"Catherine."

The confusion grew even more within Kara. "I don't know any Catherine."

"Ms Grant?"

"Oh, yes, Cat. But she never allows anyone to call her that way, and I don't know another Catherine," she said rubbing her hair. "None of this makes any sense."

Both spent minutes in silence, submerged in their own thoughts. Kara was trying to find a logical answer to everything that had happened. _Why did the Anti-Monitor attack me? How did he do it? Why right now?_ The Kryptonian rubbed her hands. _And if he wanted me to say those things?_ Beside her, Lena yawned, stretching her legs, her body suffering the reprisals of the horrible day they had had.

"You've got to rest," said Kara rubbing her shoulder. "I'll stay awake and watch. I've slept more than I sleep in a week."

Lena took her hand, kissing her knuckles and placing it on her chest, on her medallion and her heart. "I have to tell you something."

"Tomorrow, now you need to rest," said Kara resting her head on her shoulder, listening as her breathing relaxed beside her. "Rest, Lena Zor-El. Everything will be better in the morning."

"I love you, Kara," murmured Lena before closing her eyes.

"I know, Potsticker." Kara kissed her forehead. ( _'Not only do you love her enough to die for her, but also to kill'_ ) the voice repeated in her head. "I'm going to keep you safe, always, that's something I know I can promise," she said softly so as not to wake her up.

 _Lena felt the silence as if it were an object she could touch, something that entered through her ears and smashed her brain like the thickest fogs. The night stretched before her in its almost infinite blackness, without moon, almost without stars in that desert. The place seemed cold despite the fact that her skin did not feel nor did her nose smell, as if her mind was under the effects of the deepest of dreams, her ability to reason limited to her instinct. She advanced through the cracked earth, dry, white like a thousand-year-old fossil. It could have been hours, or maybe it was just minutes for the human woman. But after that, Lena saw something even darker lying five meters to her left. She walked toward the object, slowly at first, increasing in speed as she recognized a human form lying on the ground._

 _The woman's skin looked brittle to the touch, wrinkled and withered like old paper. She was bleeding from a small but deep wound in her shoulder, Lena saw the blood as she knelt beside her. Her right wrist also had a deep cut, which bled uncontrollably, staining the floor beneath her body. In spite of everything, she was still alive, breathing raggedly through her pain._

 _Lena tried to open her mouth to talk to her, try to help her. The wind blew and brushed the woman's blond hair from her face, making Lena petrify with horror as she recognized the woman she loved._

* * *

 **The Gap**

 **7:08 AM**

Lena took a couple of seconds to fully wake up, checking that the morning light had replaced the night stars. She looked to her left, but Kara was no longer at her side. A loud childish sob caught her attention, causing her to turn to the Batmobile. _Fuck._ Helena Wayne was awake, and scared enough to cry inconsolably, while her girlfriend kept her from approaching Kate.

"Aunt Kate, please, wake up," moaned Helena.

Lena approached them hurriedly, suppressing a moan when her eyes fell on the female soldier. Kate was even paler than usual, her expressionless face wet with sweat. Lena knelt beside her and put a hand on her forehead, feeling a small wave of panic when she felt the heat of the fever. _Dammit. Dammit_. Her eyes met Kara's, worried and slightly desperate. The girl was muttering something, but Lena could not hear her words.

"Helena, please, sweetheart, I need you to get back in the car," said Kara in a sweet, slightly nervous voice.

"Where we are?", the frightened girl asked. "Where is mom and dad? What happened to Aunt Kate? Supergirl..."

"I'll explain everything to you later, I promise," answered Kara, lifting her into her arms, stroking her head as she put her back inside the Batmobile. "But first I have to help Kate, do you understand? And for that I need you to keep calm and trust me, can you trust me?"

The girl nodded sadly, wiping away her tears. Kara kissed her forehead. "You're very brave, Helena."

Kara closed the car door and walked away, kneeling next to Lena and Kate. Lena watched her girlfriend use her x-rays to examine the redhead. The Kryptonian sighed with concern. "Her wound got infected."

"Shit," said Lena, clenching her fists.

"We have to take her to a hospital," said Kara, trying to lift her gently. But Lena stopped her by gently placing her hand on hers. "Lena, what are you doing?"

"Give me a second, just a second."

 _Can you cure her?_ **I can**. Lena sighed in relief. **But it will hurt you a little.** _Doesn't matter, she's more important. Do it._

"I can cure her," said the brunette, quickly removing her jacket.

Kara looked at her in surprise. "You can...?"

"Yes, I can cure her."

Kara obliged and Lena gently brushed a strand of red hair off Kate Kane's forehead, placing her hand gently on the injured part of her head. The brunette breathed deeply to force herself to calm down. Closing her eyes, she waited for that change to happen and was ready when she felt the Monitor's presence combine with hers. She felt stronger immediately, more distant, as if she was seeing everything from the other side of a glass pane.

"Lena?" asked Kara, touching her elbow. "You still here?"

"Yes," she answered softly. "Everything feels weird, but I'm here."

"Your right eye is red."

"I am also here," the Monitor replied, causing Kara to jump up in surprise.

Lena could see, and feel, the wound and pain in Kate's head, as she had felt Kara's pain the day before. _What do I do now?_ **Do not think, just feel her wound healing**. **You must wish it hard.** Lena pursed her lips and tried to do as the Monitor had told her, repressing the scientific part of her brain that told her that nothing made any sense. She did not succeed on the first attempt. **It does not work if you do not believe it.** **Concentrate on your friend.** She inhaled deeply, relaxing her muscles and concentrating on Kate _. I have to think of Kate_. Kate was, by far, one of the best people she had ever met. A strong and brave soldier who was willing to believe in her. A fighter in essence. _The world is much better with people like Kate._

Her hands on Kate's head warmed almost without her noticing, slowly repairing the damage. Lena wanted to look up to look at Kara, but she did not for fear of losing concentration. Instead, she remained motionless like a statue, watching how Batwoman's wound healed, mentally pleading with all her might to not blow up her head by accident.

Kara watched the wound intently. "It's almost healed," she said softly.

Once Kate was completely healed, Lena slowly pushed her hands away from Kate's head. Immediately she felt the Monitor leave with a shake, as if her throat had decided to escape from her neck.

Kara took her gently by the arms. "You okay?"

"Yes, just a little dizzy." It took her a couple of seconds to focus her eyes again, in front of Kara's beautiful face. For the rest, and to her surprise, she felt no pain. "The Monitor said it would hurt me a little, but it didn't."

Kara nodded thoughtfully, rubbing her shoulders.

Lena heard a growl coming from below. Avoiding Kara's eyes, she saw Kate yawn and stretch her arms, as if she was just waking up from a short nap. The soldier woman opened her eyes, frowning as she saw them. "You two. Real. Not nightmare. The fuck."

"Kate," said Kara, examining her again. "Are you okay? How are you feeling?"

"Unbelievable that even on my deathbed you two are the most fucking cloying couple I've ever seen. I'm going to have diabetes because of you," said Kate, removing the bandage from her head and throwing it away. "Otherwise, better than ever."

Lena saw Kara turn her head brusquely towards the Batmobile. Three seconds later, Helena opened the door, exclaiming 'Aunt Kate!' and running to the redhead to hug her. Kate stroked her head, with a smile that did not reach her eyes.

Lena looked back at Kara, wishing she could erase the worry lines that creased her forehead.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **7:29 AM**

Kate's condition seemed to be much better than good, as if Lena's help had injected adrenaline directly into her veins. After making sure to put out the campfire to leave no trace behind them, the four of them went up to the Batmobile again, Lena and Kate in the front seats, Kara and the little Wayne behind. The morning light had never seemed so bothersome to Kara. Adding to the fact that she was beginning to feel hungry, the Kryptonian felt irritable. Her eyes fell on Helena, who was hugging her backpack as if suddenly everything around her had become terrifying. Kara sighed, feeling a twinge of guilt as she rubbed the little girl's shoulder. "Everything will be okay, I promise."

Helena looked at her with frightened eyes for a second. Then she approached her and wrapped her small arms around her, hiding her face in Kara's side. Kara did not realize how much she needed a hug until then. Sighing, she rubbed her head gently.

They had to bypass the main road to avoid being seen. As Metropolis was one of the largest cities in the country, the police had been on high alert since the attack on National City two weeks ago. And with the disappearance of a murder suspect, Kara was not surprised to hear policemen around the entire city's border. She felt a hint of worry as they moved toward the City of Tomorrow.

"How are we going to get in without being seen? This is the Batmobile, after all," asked Kara.

"Lex always thought about all the possibilities. He made a lot of secret tunnels under the city, in case Superman ever attacked us," answered Lena without looking at her. "There's an underground ramp two hundred feet ahead, leading to one of his old lairs."

Less than a minute later, the car stopped and Lena went outside. Kara's girlfriend examined the ground for a moment, approached a small rock that did not stand out in any way and stepped on it. Immediately a ramp opened fifteen feet forward, just behind Lena, as if out of nowhere. The brunette returned to the vehicle and closed the door behind her, starting the engine and moving forward.

The Batmobile entered onto the dark ramp and the morning light died immediately, being replaced by bright neon lamps, as if passing through an underground tunnel. As much as Kara struggled, she was not able to see, smell or hear anything beyond the lead walls. _Lex Luthor had no imagination._ Helena hugged her tighter, and Kara took her small hand and squeezed it gently to comfort her. The tunnel stretched endlessly, dark, silent, almost spooky. Kara took a deep breath to try to control the growing sense of claustrophobia that oppressed her skull. ( _Tiny distant stars blackness loneliness silence silence silence)._ The Kryptonian let go of the girl's hand so as not to risk breaking it by accident. The tension released from her throat in a sigh of relief when she saw a barely perceptible green glow in the distance. Kara counted the seconds impatiently, until the light grew larger and larger, and managed to distinguish some type of armored room in the middle of the underground tunnel.

The green lights were so bright that Kara's super-sensitive eyes narrowed for a moment. Even so, she was able to count eight more tunnels around her, but could not be sure of their length because of the lead around the whole place. Her eyes, already accustomed to the light, examined the spacious bunker. A large computer with a dusty appearance was on the other side of the wall. There were empty glass cabinets next to the tunnel, Kara tried not to think what was there before Lex Luthor was arrested. All the furniture and tables were covered by white sheets; she used her vision to see what was underneath. _No Kryptonite, bombs, or Kal clones. That's good._ Kara could not help thinking that the place had some resemblance to Oliver's Arrowcave, but she could not help but feel nervous there, where Lena's brother had stored weapons to kill her cousin.

The four got out from the Batmobile, and Helena immediately stuck to Kate's leg as if it were a lifeline. Lena began to remove all the sheets from the tables and Kara imitated her. On the tables there were only hundreds of widely used tools, organized by size ( _Why did Lena never take all this? She told me that she had gotten rid of all of Lex's things_ ). Kara frowned when, under the last sheet, she found a completely normal motorcycle. "I thought you destroyed your brother's things," said Kara neutrally.

"I removed the weapons of mass destruction, but I kept the place just in case," replied Lena quickly, not looking at her while dusting the computer. Kara could not help but notice that her heartbeat was too calm.

Kate cleared her throat, drawing their attention. "I guess the bike was your brother's, right?" asked Kate approaching the vehicle.

"And mine too," the brunette replied turning to her, her face calm as if she were talking about someone else. "It was our first project together, an electric motorcycle that doesn't need fuel and doesn't pollute." She continued cleaning the computer. "Just a summer project from when we were kids."

"It works?" asked Kate.

Lena gave her a quick glance up and down. "Like an old Nokia."

"Good, because I need to borrow this for forty minutes," said Kate. "I have to take care of Helena. An old friend of mine can take her to a safe place. I can also get-..."

"What?", the girl asked startled. "No no no, Aunt Kate, please, this place is safe. You and Supergirl can protect us all. I want to be with you and look for my parents."

Unable to stop it, Kara remembered her mother's blue eyes the last time she saw her alive, her father's false smile when the pod took off.

Kate sighed, suddenly looking much older than she really was. "Your parents would want you to be safe while we solve this problem. And we have to take care of very important matters, Lennie, so you're not safe with us," said Kate, stroking her shoulder. "You won't be safe with your brothers either, baby girl. I'll have to take you to a friend, she'll take care of you for a while."

"But what if you don't come back?" she asked hoarsely. "Please, aunt, don't leave me. I don't care if it's dangerous, I don't want to be alone."

Kara knelt at that moment, rubbing her small shoulders. "You know, Helena? When I was little I had to separate from my family too. I remember that I wanted to stay with them, even though it was dangerous, but my mother sent me away because she knew it was best for me. And I was so scared..." Kara rubbed her hands. "It's okay if you're scared, but you have to trust Kate. You can do it. Kate knows what's best for you. She's trying to help your parents, but she can't do that if she always worried about you, you understand?" Helena nodded sadly. "Can you do that for us? Can you be safe so we can help your parents?"

The girl stood still for three seconds, as if afraid to move. Finally, she nodded slowly, her gaze on the ground.

"Thanks, Helena."

The girl took two steps forward and wrapped Kara in a tight hug, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. "I love you, Supergirl," whispered Helena before walking away.

Lena gave Kate quick instructions on the use of the electric motorcycle. "Don't force the engine and ride slowly. It's not made to get away from a chase, so make sure nobody follows you," the brunette said. "Be careful, Kate."

Kara saw the female soldier nod in silence, taking the girl's hand. "I'll be back in no time."

"Kate," said Kara slowly, leaning on Lena's shoulder. Her girlfriend looked at her with worried eyes and put her arm around her. "If you can, bring me a pizza... Or better, twenty."

The redhead nodded. "Don't worry."

Kate walked to the trunk of the Batmobile and pulled out a pair of black helmets. Helena remained quiet and silent like a ghost. Kara realized at that moment that her childhood was over. She would never see the world in the same innocent way from now on. ( _A pod taking off, a planet exploding, darkness, silence, silence, silence_ ). When their eyes met, the girl smiled faintly, a glimmer of hope at the end of her lips. But before putting on the helmet and getting on the motorcycle, Helena's gaze fell on Lena, and her eyes went out with something that Kara wished she had not seen there.

Hate.

* * *

 **The DEO Director**

 **8:17 AM**

Lucy kept her lips tight, her arms crossed on her chest as she watched the screen in the middle of the headquarters. Turning her head, she asked Grady if there was any possibility that the data were wrong, but the soldier shook his head. _Times are hard_ , thought Lucy putting her hands on her hips. Hate crimes against aliens had increased by twenty-five percent in the fourteen days since the attack on National City. If Lucy did not know how good a motivation hatred and fear were, she would not believe it. _Now half of the country believes that aliens are terrorists. It'll not be long before we lose control._ "Grady, get me President Marsdin."

The soldier tapped quickly on the computer. "We don't have access."

"We're the DEO, we always have access," answered Lucy. "The White House has us on a direct line."

"The oval office isn't answering, Major. I can try the vice president."

"I'm not interested in the vice president, I need Marsdin." She turned and walked away from the screen. "The president hasn't shown up in public for weeks, something feels wrong. Marsdin isn't one to allow disorder."

"Maybe she has other problems."

"What's more serious than the biggest collective hysteria towards a minority since 9/11?" she asked seriously. "Because we're just one step away from installing alien detectors at airports."

"Amazons," he replied shrugging. "But it's just my humble opinion."

Lucy decided it was not worth continuing that conversation, and moved down the hall to the exit. _I need to call Lois. If she doesn't know something, she can find out._ But when she reached the stairs, a woman ran down to her, awakening her alert instinct before she recognized Vasquez. She still wore the women's tuxedo that was part of her undercover job as one of Cat Grant's security guards, and had a tablet in her hands.

"What are you doing here, Susan? You have to go with Mrs Grant to the interview in a few hours."

"Trust me, I hate being here," she gasped. She seemed to have run a marathon. "I can practically feel the magnetic fields destroying my cells."

"Susan."

"Winslow Schott, Senior. I got this video ten minutes ago, he must know I'm in the DEO," Vasquez gave Lucy the tablet, playing a video.

In the video, the older man with an uncomfortable resemblance to Winn looked at her mockingly. _'Greetings, traitors to humanity. The news has come to me that you are only interested in protecting the abominations that destroyed our world, that ruined my son. You and Mrs. Grant. And that's why both you and Mrs. Grant cling to them trying to maintain your power. Tell that woman to withdraw her candidacy for a job that is too big and too good for her, and write magazines again, or I will personally make sure she knows what it is to lose a child. She has until midnight, otherwise, I will go for her son.'_

Lucy gave her the tablet, both turning and walking towards the center of the building. "Cat has to cancel the interview. She has to be safe, go and take her out from wherever she is." Susan nodded. "Wait for my instructions."

* * *

 **Lena**

 **8:19 AM**

It took Lena about forty-seven minutes and forty seconds to reconnect her brother's old computer to the power source. It was a model of personal use that she had helped design five years ago, on one of those rare occasions when Lex had asked her for help. By then her brother had already become sullen and paranoid, coldly distant from the world. Lena remembered a little embarrassed how happy she had felt that her brother shared that moment with her. That he trusted her. _Stupid, naive girl._

Lena stuck her head out from under the machine, and that movement caused a small cloud of dust that made her sneeze. _This place needs a good cleaning._ The computer was ready to be used. Lena looked at the home screen for five eternal minutes, wondering where to start. _I have to find a way to decipher Lillian's book_. Lena reached out and took the book that was next to the keyboard, opening it and reading the first page without understanding. _I should speak Banen._ She had learned Spanish, Portuguese, French, Chinese, Japanese and Russian in her eight years in Ireland, but that seemed useless compared to her inability to understand the language of her own mother. _The Bat had a Banen translator on his computer. Because, of course, his superpower is being paranoid enough to do something like that. Maybe if I connect the computer to the Batmobile database..._

"Kara, do you see any extension cord around here?" Her eyes fell on Kara, sitting at a table a little to the left, her lips tight and her eyes blank. There was a small screwdriver in her hands, and several kinds of gears and wires in front of her. Lena saw the Kryptonian drop the screwdriver and write quickly in a notebook beside her. _What's she doing? She should be resting._ Lena was about to open her mouth to tell her that she should not spend her little energy at that moment, but she stopped at the last moment, restrained by the sudden and painful feeling of guilt that filled her throat as she realized that any malaise Kara had at that moment, it was _(It's not my fault. Lutessa wants me to think that, I can't let her win)_ because of her.

The Kryptonian noticed the stillness and silence of the brunette without even looking up. "Did you say something, Lee? I wasn't listening."

"Forget it," she replied. "What are you doing?"

"The interdimensional extrapolator Cisco gave me the first time I went to Earth-1 was lost in the explosions," said Kara without looking at her. "I am trying to improvise."

Lena remembered the device well. She had always believed that it was the work of a genius, a gadget capable of opening quantum doors in space-time itself. Many times, she had wanted to build one on her own, but she changed her mind when she realized that it would need the energy of twenty-five cities together to work. "We don't have the energy to build another interdimensional extrapolator."

"I know," replied Kara. "Since Barry is a living battery, only he and his team can build another one. That's why I'm making a radio."

"A radio?" asked Lena, slowly approaching, sitting in front of her. The brunette noticed that Kara was writing equations in Kryptonian numbers.

"To alert Barry," she released the screwdriver from the spherical device. "I had to take the nanotechnology processor out of my family's sphere to improvise a quantum transmitter, but I had no choice. I have to talk to him, send him a message. Barry told me he would always be there if I needed help. I have never needed it more."

Kara looked so stressed that Lena reached out to hold her hand, caressing her thumb. "You don't look well."

"I'm not," Kara released her hand. "Not right now."

"Is it because you're hungry?" the brunette asked, ignoring the cold sensation in her hand. "Or because you're angry?"

Kara took a deep breath, letting go of the screwdriver and looking into her eyes for the first time. The dark shadows under her eyes felt like a needle sinking into Lena's ribs. "Lately I'm always mad, Lena. I'm used to ignoring it, but now..." Kara closed her eyes and pressed the bridge of her nose. "It's like they're under my skin, inside my brain... Turning me to nothing more than a name and a number, a character in a book they can write at will," she whispered. "I feel like a puppet."

Lena rested her arms on the table, moving closer to her face so that Kara could see the seriousness in her eyes. "You think," Lena took the screwdriver and put it back in Kara's hand. "You feel," she tried again to touch her, and this time her touch was well received by the melancholy-eyed blonde. "And you make your own decisions. You will never be a puppet of destiny, because you build yours, every day, Kara."

Kara looked at her for a second before nodding slightly, almost sincerely. Lena knew that she had not completely believed her. The blonde looked at her improvised project again. "I've got the correct frequency of quantum waves. I just have to calibrate the battery to the energy of my sphere, without it exploding, of course," said Kara, smiling a little. "I could use a genius's help."

"Sure, Puppy," said Lena, taking the pair of thermal clips that were on the other side of the table. "You're doing pretty well without me, by the way. You could've been a scientist instead of a reporter," she said trying to cheer her up.

"No, not really." Kara shrugged. "My father would have finished this fifteen minutes ago. I only know what he taught me on Krypton and a couple of things I learned at Star Labs. I was never too interested in science," said Kara, resting her face on her hand. "It reminds me too much of my family... You know my father wanted me to be a scientist too? The House of El were all scientists, working in laboratories all day. I knew it was important, but I was little and it seemed like the most boring thing in the world. I preferred when my aunt Astra told me about her adventures in the army. Maybe if Krypton hadn't died, I'd have joined the army too, to protect my planet."

"It's what you do now," said Lena, able to listen to her girlfriend and handle a highly dangerous source of energy at the same time.

"Yes," Kara nodded. "I'm sorry I'm not the best company at the moment, Potsticker."

"You don't have to apologize for your emotions, Kara," replied Lena, pausing to concentrate on her girlfriend. "Just don't forget that you're not alone. I'm here with you, and always will be, until the end."

"And then?" asked Kara with her lower lip slightly trembling. "What will we have left after the end? Everyone knows that I'm Supergirl, we will never be safe again."

"We'll work something out," Lena kissed her hand. "We'll solve it somehow, I swear. You believe me?"

Kara sighed slowly, letting go of all the stress in her chest. Then she nodded with a small smile. "I do."

Lena continued working on the interdimensional radio for five more minutes in an almost comfortable silence. She glanced sideways at Kara from time to time. Her appearance had improved a little, but her pallor and sunken cheeks still made her worry. The collar of her shirt had a brown spot that went almost unnoticed from that angle, Solomon Grundy's blood that she had not been able to remove. Lena realized with concern that Kara had not eaten anything for almost twenty-four hours ( _c'mon Kate hurry up_ ), which explained her weakened appearance. She neither had eaten since yesterday, but nevertheless she did not have the slightest hint of hunger nor could she remember the last time she had had it.

Kara spoke again when Lena was almost finished. "How do you think they knew we were in Gotham?"

Lena stopped, looking at Kara and shaking her head slightly, unable to imagine the way they knew it. _How do you hide from someone who is everywhere?_ She thought with melancholy. _How can you run away?_

Kara pressed her lips together. "I don't think it'll take them long to find us, we can't stay in Metropolis."

"I know."

"And if they listen to the message? Can we do something so Veritas can't hear it? A way only Barry gets it?"

"Radio waves spread everywhere, Kara, even quantum... But we can use it to our advantage," said Lena having an idea. "We can send a message inside another message, so if Veritas hears it, they get false information. Your friend Barry is a speedster. If the real message is fast enough, only he'll be able to hear it."

Kara smiled broadly for the first time in days and for a second the sun came out in the underground lair. "You're a genius." Kara took the pencil and began writing in the notebook. Her hand moved only slightly faster than humanly possible. "In the fake message, I'll say that we're on our way to the South Pole, and that we'll meet him there. But in the real message, I will tell Cisco that we need him."

"Why Mr. Ramon?"

"Cisco doesn't only opens portals between Earths, he can also track people through space-time through vibes. He can find us, and not only us but also-..."

"My mom. Our friends. Lutessa." Lena finished getting up, a tiny glimmer of hope flourishing in her chest. "I hope your friend really is the fastest man alive on his Earth."

* * *

 **Kate Kane**

 **9:10 AM**

The female soldier could never get used to Metropolis's bright sun. As she made her way back with the motorcycle through the streets of the borough of Freeland, her mind tried to ignore the burning in her skin. _This is the perfect city for Kryptonians._ Kate sighed wearily, forcing her mind away from pessimistic thoughts and focusing on her goal. _Helena will be fine. I have to believe that she'll be fine, or I'll go crazy. It's the best I can give her now._ Freeland streets were plagued by gang members and petty criminals at this time of the morning. Despite wearing a helmet, Kate felt naked without her Batwoman suit, as if every gang member, drug addict and vagabond who passed by her side knew exactly who she was. As if she had a luminous sign pointing towards her. _With my luck, surely Black Lightning will show up to fry my ass._

Kate turned right, slowing down so that no neighbor heard the noise of the motorcycle and felt too curious. The entrance to the tunnel was on the back porch of an old abandoned house. Kate got off the motorcycle, stepping on old trash, crunchy leaves and used syringes to look for the tunnel access button behind a green garbage container that seemed to be there since archaic times. Kate put her gloved hand into the dark hole, feeling the surface to find the button. When after a couple of frustrating minutes she found it, she pressed it and was able to get into the tunnel quickly, the echo of the door closing bouncing on her head as she rode the motorcycle.

As she approached the green light, Kate wondered why she had not seen Kara's cousin fly across the sky all morning. Usually Superman was not far from the center of Metropolis, from where he was perfectly visible to the rest of the city, even if it was as a small red spot. Kate did not know what conclusions to draw, or if she should be worried. _Maybe I should talk to Kara,_ thought Kate, when she arrived at the center of the lair with her companions. Both were sitting in front of the computer, Lena turning as she heard the noise of the bike to look at her. "I'm back." Kate took off her black helmet and took the five boxes of pizza she had in the back. "I hope you like teriyaki, Kara, because-"

Kate managed to see a blue and yellow stain take a pizza from her hands and eat it at full speed in a blink. As Kara swallowed the last slice, she returned to her normal speed, and Kate could hear her moan with satisfaction. The Kryptonian blushed slightly and gave her an apologetic look. "Sorry, it was urgent," she said taking another pizza box, opening it more slowly. "Thanks, Kate."

The female soldier looked her up and down. "Can you die of hunger? If your metabolism needs so much food-..."

"I duw knuw," said Kara with her mouth full, then she swallowed. "But I'm not going to find out."

Kate took a pizza and gave the rest to Kara, then walked to the computer to sit next to Lena. On the computer screen, her companions had compiled all the information available on the Internet about the surgeon Gregory House and the English doctor Hugh Laurie. _There's hardly any information about him after faking his death_. Kate read everything in silence, trying not to let her hunger distract her while she ate her second slice of pizza. Out of the corner of her eye she could see, curiously, that Lena ate slowly and uninterestingly, almost forcibly, as if she were not hungry even though none of them had eaten anything since yesterday. Kara sat quietly beside her, eating her third pizza.

"The food will be a problem?" Kate asked Kara.

She shook her head. "I needed your help because I was very weak, but now that I've eaten I can handle myself. It won't be a problem."

Despite noticing that the blonde was being honest, Kate could not help but worry a little about her tired and slightly angry look. _Superwoman seems to need to crush someone's head_. "Kara, about what happened yesterday..."

The blonde and Lena looked at her.

"You're good?"

Kara lightly pressed her lips. "I'm alive... And sane."

Kate felt unsure about how to interpret that response, so she just squeezed her shoulder, wishing she had the right words to comfort the younger girl and unable to find them. Kara opened her mouth again, as if she wanted to say something and did not know where to start. Finally, Lena took her hand, and that seemed to help her a little.

"He was there, the Anti-Monitor. He does very bad things to your mind. He takes away... everything you are, what you feel, what you love, and the only thing you can feel is pain."

"Then you could see him?" Kate asked softly.

Kara looked away, shaking her head. "Otherwise I would have gone crazy."

"You don't have to keep talking about this now, Kara," said Lena squeezing her hand. "Give yourself a little more time."

"If I do that, I'll forget everything I saw and felt, Lena. And even if it's painful, I can't forget it. I have to remember it, to remember why it's so important to get rid of that thing."

A discomfort that was heartbreakingly impossible to ignore spread through her insides, like a black hole eating her from within. _How strong do you have to be to traumatize the Woman of Steel?_ They were wrapped in a tense silence, tangible as if the female soldier could see their wounds floating above their heads, until—thanks to God—Lena spoke and broke the spell.

"I've tried hacking the security cameras at Princeton Plainsboro, but it's a lot harder than I thought. It turns out that a private hospital is safer than Arkham. Can you give me a hand?", she asked.

"Sure," Kate answered quickly.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **10:07 AM**

Hacking the hospital's cameras was not an easy task for Kate, but after twenty minutes she managed to break the encryption of the server without being detected by the security system. Kara wondered how the Bats always achieved whatever they set out to do. They spent twenty more minutes looking for the doctor in the images, with no results other than realizing that he was not there.

"And according to the records he hasn't gone to work since last Monday," said Kate, stretching in her chair. "This gives me a bad feeling."

Lena pursed her lips. "If what we believe is true and he faked his death to escape from Veritas, the moment they knew how Lillian faked my death, his own cover must have been in danger."

Kara stood up and smoothed her clothes. "How about we figure it out? I can take us to his house right now. Every minute counts."

Kara heard Lena's heart began to beat faster at the mention of moving at super speed again, but neither she nor the redhead objected. Her girlfriend and Kate stood up and approached her, holding onto her shoulders and hips.

"Moving at super speed is safe for humans?" asked Kate in a calm voice, none of her vital signs betraying her.

"So far nobody has died," replied Kara.

"That doesn't sound good."

"Just don't breathe and hold tight," said Lena taking a deep breath. "And whatever you do, don't try to talk."

Kara counted to three to give them time to prepare, and then ran at full speed through a tunnel on her right with Kate and Lena in her arms, opening the door, going out into the street in the borough of Park Ridge. Sunlight caressed her skin immediately, and Kara could not help but shudder with pleasure as she felt her powers return to her, crying out to be used. She started to run west, toward the Bay of Metropolis and the borough of Barkerline. Images of Metropolis's dazzling buildings passed in front of them, like a kaleidoscope of colors, as always happened every time she used her super speed. Kara's brain quickly processed all the information around them. _Traffic near us. Doves on the buildings. Lena and Kate's fast heartbeats. Hundreds of people walking._ Kara jumped and ran between the walls of the main avenue to shorten the path, clutching her grip on both women. It was at that moment, for a fraction of a second, that a blue and red spot flew by at full speed over their heads _. There you are, Kal._ Kara bit her lip and turned right onto Germanotta Avenue. The street was blocked by huge trucks and Kara had to jump and run on them to move forward. She continued down that street for a mile and a half, until she reached the edge of the bay. _Okay, I can do it_. Kara increased the speed to the necessary to run on the water without melting Lena and Kate's brains in the process. The ground beneath her was replaced by water, cold and crystalline through her shoes. It felt like running on a cloud, flying through the water. An unexpected feeling of pleasure grew in her chest. When she reached the other shore, Kara took a big jump over the beach to avoid raising sand, landing on a small street and going straight that way, until she reached a larger street with colorful family houses. Kara stopped behind an oak tree, to avoid drawing the neighbors' attention on the sidewalk.

The Kryptonian lowered Lena and Kate gently onto the ground. Her girlfriend clung to her with hands like claws, her entire body trembling like jelly, trying to regain balance. Kate staggered and leaned against the tree, her face wet and her eyes spinning uncontrollably.

"Um..." said Kara feeling a bit guilty. "I'm sorry, I wanted to make sure no one saw us."

"What did she say?" Kate asked Lena. "Danvers, don't talk to me in Kryptonian."

Kara put her arm around Lena to keep her from falling. "Just take a deep breath, the dizziness will go away quickly."

They soon regained their composure, their heart rates soothing with deep puffs of air. Lena rubbed her neck and exchanged a glance with Kate, the redhead dusting off her red jacket.

"The house is on the other street," said Kara.

"I'm ready," replied Lena, pulling up the hood of her coat. Kate nodded, doing the same.

The three of them began to walk, the pleasant street with the sound of families playing under the timid winter sun. Kara fixed her eyes on a group of three children on the other side of the street, decorating a house with fake cobwebs and laughing pumpkins. _Halloween is coming._ The doctor's house did not stand out from the others at first glance, being equally spacious and well groomed. There was no vehicle in sight.

Kara made sure no one was looking in her direction and broke the lock on the metal gate, letting Lena and Kate in before closing it behind her. They were going to keep going when she heard an almost imperceptible beep, and immediately stopped the other two women gently. Her x-ray vision revealed that there were motion sensors buried in the garden, ready to alert the owner of the house at the slightest step. "Wait, there're motion sensors."

"It's no obstacle," replied Batwoman standing upright, and flexing her fingers. "I know at least five ways to avoid any motion sensor, I just need- _Hey!_ " Kate complained when Kara took them in her arms and began to float slowly towards the main entrance, two inches from the ground. Without releasing them, Kara gently broke the lock on the front door.

The first thing she saw before leaving them on the floor was a small table with fake flowers by the door, welcoming her to one of the most normal places Kara had seen in a long time. It looked like a living room of a normal scholar, with a library, red armchairs and molecules of dust floating in the light of the window. The place smelled like old paper and lemon disinfectant. There was not a single element out of place, as if everything were part of the stage of a play.

Kate closed the door behind them, touching the surface of the sofa. "Nobody ever sits here," she said, walking towards the kitchen.

Lena went over to the bookcase, examining the old medicine tomes. She pulled out a book and opened it, frowning. "This book is blank." Lena left it on the sofa on her left and took others. "And this one too, and this one. They're just blank books."

"I don't smell or see the trace of any human." Kara glanced around, looking for any trace of Dr. Laurie. _Garden, empty. Bedroom, empty. Dining room, empty. Kitchen, only Kate checking._ Squeezing her lips, Kara closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to find a masculine scent, a characteristic smell of the owner of the house in his things. _Everything smells new, false._

 _Where are you?_

"Do you hear something?" asked Lena looking at her with curious fascination, as she always did when she used her super senses.

Kara held her breath and concentrated on her hearing, trying to ignore the louder sounds around her ( _our hearts, birds on the roof, the clock in the kitchen, appliances, children playing outside_ ) to concentrate on the farthest, those she was used to ( _all neighbors in their homes cars on the streets people talking breathing walking dogs cellphone cats music radio couples in the park a baby people people people_ ) suppressing. And among all that cacophony, a stealthy hum, subtle as a mouse, deep below where Lena was standing. Kara concentrated on that sound and tried to find others around it. A disorderly series of beats surrounded the main buzzing. One of them was clearer than the others. If Kara concentrated enough, it almost seemed like ( _a television?_ ).

Kara let out a small laugh, opening her eyes and meeting Lena's curious greens. "I found him."

At that moment Kate entered the living room again, drinking orange juice. "You took your time. With the level of the floor and the shape of the house, it's obvious that there's a hiding place underground. I found the entrance in the kitchen, but it's locked from the inside... Can you see him, Kara?"

"No," she said looking down at the floor, surprised that Kate knew before she did. "It looks like it's made of lead, I guess I'll have to be less subtle. Get away a little, honey, please."

Kara extended her arms, calculating the speed at which she should turn to quickly pierce the ground without making too much noise _. If J'onn were here..._ Kara spun like a living top. The floor broke under her feet, the dirt and rocks moving in her wake as if they were made of butter. Kara's eyes took in the darkness with indifference, concentrating on her ears and the smell of the earth. It took twenty seconds for Kara's feet to find the metal surface. At that distance, the buzz was much clearer, undoubtedly being a television. _I got you_. Kara kicked the lead hard, making a hole and enlarging it quickly, until it was big enough to go through it. The Kryptonian landed loudly on the floor of the lair. However, she let out a moan at the moment when the familiar smell of death reached her nostrils.

The man was sitting on the sofa, his eyes fixed on the television in an eternal blue gaze, more intense than fire and colder than the North Pole. His eyes did not see. His heart was not beating. His lungs did not inhale air. And his body had ceased to be part of a person to be reduced to one thing.

 _It's horrible_ , thought Kara, turning around, doing her best not to smell him, not listening to the subtle sounds of the body breaking down.

 _'Kara? You alright?'_

 _'Danvers, did you find Laurie?'_

"He's here," she said loudly, forcing herself to compose herself. "He's dead."

* * *

 **Kate Kane**

 **10:39 AM**

Kate knelt on the floor, taking out a small plastic glove from her batbelt, so she could touch the corpse without leaving her fingerprints on it. _Body still warm, purple lips. The rigor mortis hasn't yet reached the chest or the belly. He died less than five hours ago_. Kate tried to remember what she was doing five hours ago, before shaking her head and forcing herself to focus more on the body. _We couldn't have saved him_. She could hear Lena whispering something to her girlfriend. Sweet words to make sure she was okay, she supposed. Then the brunette walked towards her and knelt beside her, also examining the middle-aged man.

Lena pointed to his hands. "His nails are fine, he didn't fight."

"That's because he was poisoned... Cyanide, I'd say, by the violet of his face." _He suffered a lot._ Kate got up and walked over to the couch, next to the television and bookcase. She tried to find some glass on the floor, some pills. "There's nothing to indicate how he ingested the poison. The killer must have taken the evidence." The soldier woman examined the bookcase. There were dust spots around empty places. "And it seems like something else too." _They found him before us?_ "Crap."

Kate turned to look at Lena, who was watching the corpse on the floor with a frown. Her right hand touched her medallion. Kate admitted that she had not known her for too long, but she already knew that was a bad sign. "What's in your head, Poirot?"

Lena looked at her quickly, as if remembering that she was not alone on the planet. "I don't think Veritas did this."

Kara arched an eyebrow from the other side of the room. "What makes you think that?"

"It's not their style to leave a corpse. They never leave the slightest evidence," answered Lena. "They would never leave the body here for someone to find it."

"Maybe they made an exception," said Kate. "Don't forget they're desperate, and in a hurry. They'd be careless if they knew that one of Lutessa's doctors was still alive." _That confirms that Laurie knew something he shouldn't. But what could this man know?_

"Lena's right," said Kara, approaching the body a little more, with a clear grimace of disgust. "There's something wrong with this murder. I mean, how could they know he was alive? He hid for thirty years." She looked at Kate. "Selina- I mean, Bates was with you when you found him?"

"No, only Bruce and I." Kate looked at the corpse again. "I think we need an autopsy, to find out if we can get something else out of it. Then we'll have to go back to the Luthorcave and think of another way to move forward."

Lena crossed her arms. "We can't do an autopsy in these conditions, it would take hours."

Kara sighed, stepping forward and rubbing her hands. Kate noticed that she was a little pale. "I hate corpses," the Kryptonian said loudly, standing next to Lena.

Kate watched her pupils dilate and her lips tighten, clearly using her X-ray vision. Kate wondered what it would be like to have such useful skills incorporated in her very own biology. _What would I do if I had those powers? Could I stop terrorism once and for all?_

"He was poisoned by cyanide in Vicodin pills. It seems he took too many," said Kara.

 _What's easier than poisoning an addict?_ "Do you see any wound on his body?"

"None," Kara moved to the right, silently as if she were floating. "He has several tattoos."

"Describe them, please," asked Kate.

"A little heart on his chest that says 'Rachel'."

Kate nodded. "His stepdaughter, disappeared thirty years ago."

"Some... panties? On his pelvis, it says 'Lisa'."

"His wife."

"It seems that's- Wait, he has another tattoo on the soles of his feet... longer words."

Lena knelt down and quickly removed the shoes and socks from the corpse. The brunette had her lips pressed in a thin line. "Of course."

"What does it say?"

"On the right foot, 'Lillian is the murderer.' And on the left foot 'It wasn't a cure'."

Kate approached her and knelt to examine it with her own eyes. _Strange last words._ The last two messages from the dead man had no meaning with what they knew up to that point.

Lena stood up quickly, rubbing her hands. "This man wasn't a member of Veritas." She ran a hand through her hair. "He was smart. If he had been, he would know that they don't leave corpses. He would have known it was useless to tattoo, and they would have found him years ago. No, this man wasn't hiding from Veritas, he was hiding from Lillian."

"You say Lillian killed the doctors on her own?" asked Kara. "Maybe thirty years ago, but this man died today and Lillian's in a coma."

Lena bit her lip. "He was working with Lillian on a cure for Lutessa, but..." She looked at the tattoo again.

Kate stood by her side, drawing her attention. "Who would want to protect Lillian's secrets?"

"Only Lillian herself." Lena bit her lip. "I recognize something done by Lillian when I see it. Lutessa said that she lied to us both, but it doesn't make sense that-"

Kara touched her elbow, interrupting her. "We came here to know how to end this, not how it started. We'll catch the killer later, but it'll have to wait," said Kara seriously. "We must find the Door."

Lena sighed, placing a hand over Kara's. "You're right."

"But first I want to bury him," said Kara looking at the corpse again, hiding her grimace of disgust. "We can't leave him here, or call the police. His family is dead. I should bury him... It's the only thing I can do to help him."

Kara looked at Kate, as if she expected some objection. Kate only nodded in silence. Lena offered to help her, but Kara just smiled slightly and declined. _Of course, the scientific genius is too in love to realize that she wants to be alone._

Kate covered the body with a blanket, hoping that it would make it less unpleasant for the blonde. "Don't bury him near the city, someone could find it. The farther, the better."

"The Niagara Falls sounds like a good place to be buried," said Kara before leaning down to lift the body.

* * *

 **Lena**

 **11:01 AM**

A single sheet of paper fell on the kitchen floor, the only evidence that Kara had been there seconds ago that for Lena seemed like hours.

Kate came back into the kitchen, fixing her red jacket. "I covered the hole with a carpet. It'll have to be enough for now. I'll ask a friend to fix it discreetly later." She approached and leaned on the counter. "Will it take a long time?"

"She's flying fast and won't get out of the country, it'll only be a few minutes." Lena stood on her toes to reach the cupboard, opening it and looking for something, anything, that had alcohol. There was a small bottle of whiskey next to a bag of peanuts. Lena felt a great relief, which soon turned into melancholy _. Of course, I can't_. She wished she could blame Lillian for that problem too, but she knew that the fault had always been hers and only hers. Feeling an almost irrepressible twinge of fury, Lena opened the bottle and threw the drink down the sink, suppressing her desire to throw it out the window.

"Doing that should be illegal in our country," said Kate.

Lena did not turn around. "I'm sure you prefer wine."

"That's for children; my thing was vodka." Kate took a glass and filled it with tap water, drinking it. "How long have you been sober?"

"Almost two years, I stopped drinking after moving to National City."

"I almost three. I'd like to say it gets easier, but I'd be lying." She took another sip of water. "It's a real test of willpower, more when it seems that..."

"There's alcohol everywhere, all the time."

"Yes," said the soldier woman. "We have to talk, you know, about Laurie's death."

"It's a dead end, it won't take us to the door."

"Lena, you're a scientific genius. That doesn't make you a detective, but you must have seen it," the redhead replied using that impersonal voice to which Lena had become accustomed. "Not only that a little girl disappeared on the same dates when your mothers found a corpse, but that until now we thought Lillian joined Veritas in order to save Mercer's life. Maggie's investigation was based on the evidence that she had tried to cure her before. If that's true, why did the last witness tattoo 'It was not a cure?' on his foot?"

"I realized, Kate," replied Lena with melancholy, the familiar feeling of shame for her last name wrapping her like an old blanket. "I also noticed that there were no books in his bookcase, which means that the murderer was here recently, and that he left without anyone noticing."

Lena saw Kate press her lips. "Are you sure Lillian didn't tell Lutessa anything else?"

The very thought of Lillian and Lutessa working together made her insides freeze in terror.

"I mean, she's literally the most logical suspect, and coincidentally she has made it her personal mission to ruin her children's lives," said Kate, giving her a glass of water. "Lillian knew about the Monitor's existence, she wanted to use you because she thought it gave you powers. We know how it ended. I wouldn't rule out the possibility of the sleeping bitch using the other girl when she realized she wasn't going to get anything from you."

Lena sighed and massaged her temples, trying to bring order to her dozens of thoughts. "She wouldn't have risked it, knowing that her daughter would do anything to kill me. She'd never have found the door. She needed me to look for it. If only she had said where." _I could use Winn's brain right now... Wait._ "She knows where the door is."

"Let's go to the hospital. You can use your new powers to order the universe to wake her up and tell us where it is."

"No, Kate. What if she already told me where it is?" Lena clicked her tongue, putting her hands on her hips. "There's one thing I can do since I'm with the Monitor. It's impossible to get rid of a memory, our subconscious is unable to throw away information. Everything leaves a record, and when I sleep, I can remember old memories in detail." Lena looked into her eyes. "What if Lillian already told me when I was a baby?" At the raised eyebrow of the other woman, she twisted her mouth. "I could remember Themyscira, I even remember the day of my birth."

"We don't know if Lillian told you at some point, it wouldn't be very smart."

"She thought I'd have powers, remember? It means she tested me. If I remember the tests, I could find some detail to take us to the door." She pointed to her own head. "The answer could have been here all this time."

Lena could see that Kate tried to smile with optimism, but only managed a crooked grimace. "We've got to start with something." She stood upright. "How do you do it?"

"I have to sleep." Lena turned around and began to open the drawers of the counter. "Help me look for some sleeping pill, diphenhydramine, melatonin, theanine, hell, a bottle of chloroform, anything."

Lena heard the noise of the kitchen door opening.

Kate unholstered her gun as they both turned around. Lena found herself face to face with one of the last people she wanted to see at that moment. _But logically we were going to meet with him. After all, it's his city._

"Superman."

The Man of Steel looked at Kate's gun without any concern, and then his blue eyes focused on Lena. She could swear that the Kryptonian hero seemed strangely tired, despite there being no signs of exhaustion that her human eyes could see on his marble face. "It's good to see that you're safe and sound, Lena." His eyes returned to Kate, scanning her quickly. "You're Batwoman, Bruce's cousin."

"But are you Superman? No offense, but we've had some problems with identity thefts lately," answered Kate, without lowering her gun.

Lena stepped forward. "If it's really you, what did Kara give me for Christmas last year?"

"A Galadriel Funko Pop made with a rock from Planet Biot. Kara wanted to give you something you couldn't buy for yourself."

"And what did I buy Kara?"

"You tried to give her a Rolex but she didn't want it. Then you tried to knit her some gloves, but you almost took one of Alex's eyes out. And finally, you bought her favorite restaurant so she can have lunch for free after work."

Lena looked at Kate and nodded. The redhead lowered her gun.

Superman looked at her, his face blank. "What are you doing here?"

"We had business to attend in Metropolis."

"I don't mean Metropolis. I mean this empty house, with a huge hole in the living room. What happened here?"

"Kara found a corpse under the house," said Lena trying to make her bad temper not bring out the worst of her. "You will understand that we can't call the police. He called himself Gregory House, but it was a false name. We think he worked with Lillian years ago."

"I don't see or hear Kara around here," said Superman approaching them. "Where is she?"

"She went to bury the body after performing a visual autopsy. She'll be back in a few minutes," said Kate.

Lena saw the Man of Steel deflate his lungs slowly, diverting his gaze to the kitchen window. Her own experience with Kryptonians made her deduce that Superman was sharpening his senses to the fullest, looking for something, or someone.

Kate cleared her throat. "Do you know anything about Bruce?"

He pursed his lips. "He was legally charged with the murder of the six children. They have his DNA and yours on the bodies and Bruce doesn't have an alibi, not to mention that Selina and Helena have disappeared and people are already thinking the worst." Superman pursed his lips. "What on Earth happened yesterday? Where are Selina and Helena?"

"Veritas happened," said Lena, trying to find the best way to explain everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours without it seeming like she had lost her mind. "The same ones who attacked the Fortress, kidnapped Ms. Wayne and incriminated the bats."

"They beat Kara?" he asked with surprise.

Kate shook her head. "She was with us in Arkham, looking for Helena. But it was a distraction, they wanted to separate us to kill us all."

Lena was about to turn to look at Kate in surprise, but she caught herself in time, breathing deeply in silence to make sure her heart rate did not catch the Kryptonian's attention. _Why is Kate lying to Kent?_ After a few seconds of careful thought, she realized that if they told Superman the truth about the Crisis and the Monitor, he would surely react just like Batman. _He will think the same as Wayne, that he can beat them his way. He wouldn't understand. He's not capable._

Kate gave the Kryptonian a glass of water. "You look tense."

He smiled for less than a second. "Thank you," he said before drinking it. Lena wondered if he really was thirsty or had only done so out of courtesy. "You already discovered why they want to kill Lena?" asked Clark, his face less rigid. "The last thing Bruce told me was that the attack on National City had Lena as its target."

Kate snorted with contempt. "They're terrorists, their goal is to kill innocent people."

Lena cleared her throat, thinking that a half-truth would have to be enough. "We've discovered that Lutessa is their leader."

His eyes opened slightly. "Tess Mercer..."

"She's Lutessa, she's alive."

"Lex's sister is alive?"

"She's not our damn sister," Lena took a deep breath, scared by that spontaneous fury that flooded her mind every time she thought about Lex, and more recently, about Lutessa. "I don't think he knows, but it's Lex, you never know. Lutessa survived the illness, Lillian gave her up to Veritas when she was a child and now she wants to kill me."

"Why now? Why-?" Superman stopped and looked towards the ceiling. "Kara is coming."

Two seconds later, a yellow whirlwind slipped silently through the door and stopped beside her, so suddenly that Lena jumped. "Kara..."

"Don't show up suddenly. I forgot, I'm sorry." Kara breathed loudly, looking quickly at Lena and Kate, before her eyes stopped on her cousin. "What are you doing here, Kal?"

"We have to talk," replied Superman. "I know maybe you're angry..."

"No 'maybe', I'm angry." Kara examined him quickly. "But now is not the time to argue about that."

"Let's talk, Kara," Superman replied. "Can it be in private?"

"They've followed you?" asked Kara.

Superman twisted his lip. "Nobody knows I'm here, I made sure of it."

"You can't be sure of anything, Kal-El. They know you're Superman. They're always watching you. Go back to your house before they follow you," said Kara with a tone of impatience that promised a fight.

"They don't know I'm here, Kara," he replied insisting. "They think I'm rescuing a boat caught in the South Pole. Believe me, I've been careful, but I've to hurry."

"All right, talk then, here and now. There's nothing you can't tell me in front of my girlfriend."

"And I'm pretty discreet," said Kate, putting her hands in her pockets. "Just pretend I'm not here."

"No, you and I are leaving," replied Lena looking at Kate. "We have our own business to attend to, we don't have time for a family dispute."

""We're not going to fight,"" said both cousins vehemently.

"I wouldn't be so sure," replied Lena looking at both of them. She squeezed Kara's hand, making her glance soften. "I'll see you later."

She nodded, looking into her eyes. "Stay safe."

Lena wished she were somewhere semi private to talk to Kara, but she understood that it would have to wait.

Kate took her hand and pulled her toward the back door. "I'll also stay safe, in case someone wants to know."

The female soldier and she went out into the garden, suddenly exposing themselves to the sunlight so characteristic of her hometown. _Metropolis will always feel like my home, even if it's not anymore._ Kate helped her jump over the wooden fence to get to the street, like a couple of teenagers escaping from their house. Being in broad daylight again, Lena felt a deep concern that someone could recognize them with just a glance. _I'd be very surprised if we're not the most wanted women in the country._ But Kate had experience in going unnoticed, and both began walking down the street with their heads down.

"Whatever it is, Kara's going to tell us later," said Lena softly.

Kate pointed to her batbelt. "It won't be necessary, I'm recording everything they say."

"What?" Lena lifted her head. "How?"

"I put a nano microphone in the water Superman drank. He was focused on what was happening outside the house, not inside."

"I knew that your family could put microphones in the drinks," said Lena looking at her reproachfully.

"Don't look at me that way, it's not my fault he didn't pay attention."

"Is there nobody in your family who doesn't distrust everyone?"

"I'm trusting you, don't I? Now duck your head, you're the most famous person in the world. Do you see that alley? It has an electric fence of three meters that we can use to shorten the trip, we'll have to climb. I hope you don't fear heights."

Lena just sighed with resignation.

* * *

 **Polly Troy**

 **11:05 AM**

The young heir looked her up and down, not believing a single word of what she had said. "No, it was Theseus who defeated the Minotaur. You've heard the story wrong."

"Typical of that selfish man take the merit of victories of others." _The same way he took my sister_. "No, the one who killed the Minotaur was Princess Ariadne. The woman was the most bloodthirsty and cruel human being who ever walked under the sky, Prince Carter."

The young prince poured himself another bowl of cereal and milk, but not before offering her food, like the young gentleman he was. Hippolyta refused kindly. She knew her own body excellently, and she knew that she was more alert with her stomach empty.

"What history book did you get that from?" he asked, with an eyebrow raised in a similar way to his mother.

"Actually-"

Hippolyta was interrupted by that noisy metal rectangle that people used to communicate at a distance. _No wonder why it's called cell, they all look like prisoners of this thing_. She took it out of her pocket, and after a couple of tries she managed to press the little green button. Prince Carter pretended to pay attention to his cereal.

"You are communicating with the normal person Polly Troy of National City. Identify yourself," she said on the phone.

' _I know who I'm talking to. Don't you see my name on the phone?'_

"Identify yourself."

' _Arg. I'm Vasquez.'_

"The Empress has taken a small escort to a destination that I do not think it is prudent to reveal to this device unworthy of my confidence. You should be with her," said Hippolyta, deciding not to reveal too much information on the little metallic prison.

' _I already know. We got an alert. A man named Schott threatens to hurt Carter.'_

Hippolyta stood up, looking at the metal rectangle with defiance. "Never."

' _Listen, get out of that house. I'm sending Carter an address from a safe place where his mother will be waiting for him, since he knows how to use a cell. Take him to that place as soon as possible. I'll go for Cat and we'll see each other there. Bye.'_

The communication cut off and Hippolyta put the rectangle in her pants pocket. After thinking about it again, she took it out. "I heard they can find you with this thing anywhere in the world, is that true?"

He nodded, his eyes worried. "What happened?"

"I have to get you out of here. Susan of Vasquez is going to send you a message with an address. Memorize it and leave the cell, we are leaving."

"I got an emergency phone, it's safe," he said getting up, running to his room.

"Hurry up, young warrior!" exclaimed Hippolyta, opening the kitchen drawer and pulling out a knife. It was small and light, perfect to be handled by a young man without too much experience yet. _It will do for now, until I can teach him how to use something more useful_. Hippolyta put the knife in her pocket and ran to the stairs.

* * *

 **The Gap**

 **11:55 AM**

Lena watched Kate leave her jacket next to the computer. The redheaded woman ran a hand through her hair, clasped her fingers, and turned to look at her. "You trust me, Lena? Enough to believe that I'm with you in this?"

"Do I have another option?" answered the brunette, removing the things from the nearest table. "I've never been good at making friends, Kate, that's Kara's specialty."

"Me neither," she said approaching to help her.

Lena sat on the table, a couple of inches shorter than the soldier woman. "All right, listen. We don't have sleeping pills or any other narcotic."

"We could have gotten something on the way."

"Oh, of course. 'And in other news: the fugitive millionaires Lena Luthor and Kate Kane were found stealing somniferous drugs at a pharmacy'. This is Metropolis, there are no shadows to hide in and we barely manage to go unnoticed."

"Sure there's nothing in your lair?" asked Kate, pointing around. "Didn't your brother think about everything?"

"Lex wanted to kill Superman, not make him take a nap," answered Lena raising an eyebrow. "This is going to sound extreme, but we don't have time to lose. You have to leave me unconscious." Lena took a deep breath. "Give me a punch."

Kate let out an incredulous laugh. "What?"

"Punch me, just for this one time."

"I'm not going to hit you," said Kate crossing her arms. "Your imaginary friend won't have the pleasure of making me explode."

"She only protects me if I'm in danger. I'm not in danger now, she knows you won't hurt me," replied Lena, controlling her impatience. "Besides, even if you hurt me, it wouldn't last long. Yesterday Bates stabbed me, kicked me, and strangled me; today I don't have a scratch. Just do it." Lena sat up straight. "Trust me."

Lena did not see a single muscle move in Kate's face. "I'll count to three."

 _Whatever is necessary,_ Lena thought closing her eyes.

"One!"

 _ ***'Bamp!'***_ _Fuck_. Lena only felt the quick burst of pain pierce her skull, falling backward on the table, before everything went black.

* * *

 **I know what you are looking for Gap**

Can you help me search? A lifetime is a long time, and I'm in a hurry.

 **hazardous memories are what you are looking for**

 **but you already know**

 **they can harm you attempt against**

 **your spirit**

Lillian can't hurt me anymore. Never again. Never again.

 **you are human there are things you**

 **cannot stand I cannot protect**

 **you from yourself**

* * *

 _Lena opened her eyes in an old circular room, in the middle of a dirty floor and next to a shattered chandelier, resplendent with riches of other times. (No. Not this place). Lena recognized Lachlan Luthor's living room, the grandfather who had always seemed to hate her more than Lillian and Lionel. Lena supposed that the abandoned appearance of the place was a manifestation of her subconscious, representing the way she had felt there. She concentrated on thinking about her goal, doing her best to ignore the bitterness in her heart and put one foot in front of the other, moving toward the first door in front of her on the wall._

 _The doors seemed different from the last time. They looked bigger and heavier, not made for someone to enter but for something not to come out. Barely audible voices chatted behind each of them, horrible repressed memories claiming to escape to torture her. (There's no more appropriate place than Lachlan's mansion)._

 _ ***Bump! Bump! Bump!***_ _Lena was startled when she heard banging on the door beside her, small fists slamming in desperation._

 _'Please! Grandpa, let me out! I'm sorry!' yelled a small scared voice. 'Please I'm sorry! I didn't want to break your vase. It was an accident. Please, let me out. It's very dark here. Please, I want to get out.' The girl's voice began to cry. 'I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. Let me out. Let me out. Please.'_

 _"I hate this place," said Lena loudly, walking away from the door, reminding herself that nothing that had happened twenty-six years ago could hurt her in the present._

 _The room seemed to grow larger every second, with new doors extending without limit around her. Lena realized that she could go on like this for hours, searching and searching for a specific memory that might not be there. (Lillian tested me, it must have been traumatic enough). She stopped, closing her eyes and concentrating on Lillian, her feelings of sadness and anger towards her. How she had felt growing up with her, always wanting to be invisible so as not to get her attention. (This is my mind, what I'm looking for is here, I just have to find it)._

 _When she opened her eyes again there were only two doors, looking old, dirty and moldy. She knew it had worked when she saw, bright and mocking on the first door, the symbol of Aletheia, auguring more misfortune as always. She reached for the doorknob, but stopped when she read the inscription on the other door, large black letters that looked like visual poison._

 _ ***'The worst day of my life**_

 _ **DO NOT OPEN'***_

 _Curiosity tempted her for a second, wondering what could be so bad in her collection of bad memories as to need a warning. But she ended looking away from the other door, and feeling that there was no choice but to resign, opened the door in front of her and looked inside._

 _It was a gray, grim room that looked as cold as the inside of a freezer. Lena recognized Luthor Manor's basement thanks to a small diamond-shaped window. The first thing she saw was a disturbingly young Lillian, carrying in her arms her two-year-old version, and sitting her by a children's table with various blocks, toys and dolls. Baby Lena had red eyes, a sign that she had been crying a short time ago and would soon start again. Lena did not dare to go in to look closely at the memory, but her eyes did not detach from Lillian, trying to find some clue in her appearance._

 _The young Lillian pulled an old recorder out of her pocket, turning it on and putting it away again. Then she sat facing the baby, smiling falsely in a grimace that time had not changed. 'How are you today, Lena? Do you want to play today?'_

 _The baby did not answer, in a sullen silence._

 _'Do you know something?' asked Lillian in a sweet voice. 'Today is exactly two months since we adopted you. Don't you think it's a reason for celebration? Mommy has bought you-...'_

 _'No Mommy.'_

 _'... all these toys.' Lillian took a white teddy bear. 'Do you like it? How about you play with Mom?'_

 _Baby Lena took the white bear and threw it away. 'No Mom! No Mommy! Wan hume!'_

 _'I get that you are too small to understand.' For a moment Lillian reached out to stroke her little head, but she withdrew her hand. 'We're your family now, Lena. We adopted you two months ago at the Al-Jamil orphanage. I'm sorry, honey, if you still have any memory of your biological mother. If it hurts that she left you. Not everyone is prepared to be a father. But the good news is that you're very little. Soon you'll forgot everything, I promise. I'm your mother now. Forever.'_

 _'Nooo,' the baby replied, moaning. 'No wan. No Mommy. Wan Mommy. Wan Mom.'_

 _Lena forced herself to look, even though every corner of her mind begged her to close the door. She forced herself to think of the baby as if she were someone else, an unknown person._

 _Lillian sighed silently, as if she wanted to be careful not to make her cry. 'I'm your mother.' The woman took a bright object from her pocket. Lena clenched her teeth when she recognized the silver medallion, the same one that was on her neck at that moment. 'Look, Lena. This is the Fairy Queen's key. Do you want to play with this? It's your favorite toy, is it not?'_

 _At first the baby refused to look at Lillian, but the woman kept trying until she caught her attention._

 _'I know you like bright things. This is for you and me to play. Don't you want to play?'_

 _Baby Lena looked at her with suspicion painted in her little green eyes, her lips tight. Lillian continued to insist until she extended her small hand and took the metal circle._

 _'Very well, hold it like that. No, don't eat it, don't bring it to your mouth. You know that this toy is magical, don't you? You can do magic with it! Do you want to do magic?'_

 _The baby grimaced and looked toward the door, as if wishing someone would appear at that moment to save her. Lillian did not erase the false smile from her face. 'Think about this: you can play later with Alexander if you first play with me. Do you like to play with your older brother, Lena?'_

 _'Yay.'_

 _'Because you love your older brother, don't you?'_

 _'Luv Lex.'_

 _'I know, honey.' Lillian quickly stroked her little head. 'Do you see these dolls here? What would you say if I told you they can fly? You can make them fly, Lena. Do you want to see them fly?'_

 _'No! No wan!'_

 _'What do you say? Of course you want. When I was your age, I was dying to have dolls like these. They can fly if you ask them. Ask the doll to fly, Lena,' said Lena, 'Just think about how much fun it would be and they'll fly, they'll fly to make you happy. Would you like that?'_

 _'No no NO!'_

 _Lillian sighed. 'What do you want?'_

 _'Wan Mooommyyyyy.'_

 _For a moment it looked like Lillian was going to slap her, but she closed her eyes and sighed. Baby Lena shifted uncomfortably in her chair. 'Alright, let's try something else. The goal of our game is to make you happy. How about I tell you a story? I know you like stories.'_

 _'There was once, an adventuress named Edith. Edith had a best friend, Mrs. Rabbit. They both lived happily together, but the world they lived in was always at war, so they decided they wanted to fight for peace and happiness.'_

 _'But one day, Mrs. Rabbit fell into a well. Edith became very sad without her best friend, so she decided to go rescue her. The problem is that the well only opened with four magic keys, hidden in four places in the world. The first key was property of the Black Magician, who lived in an invisible city. The second key was owned by King Wetbeard, who hid it in his city, and then sank his city under the water to make sure they never found it. A Human Goddess was the owner of the third key, and she always had it around her neck, so that no one would ever take it off. And the fourth key was the property of the Honest Sisters, three brave women, who decided to hide it in a temple inhabited by savages, so that nobody dared to go and look for it. But Edith was brave and wanted to do the right thing. So she left everything behind and...'_

 _Lillian was interrupted by the door opening suddenly, startling her. Lena saw a tiny Lex at the door, with bright brown hair and pajamas. 'Mummy? What are you doing?'_

 _'Lex!' Baby Lena released the medallion and ran to hug him._

 _Lena saw that Lillian clenched her fists and her lips became a thin line, trying to contain her anger. 'Your sister couldn't sleep. I was trying to calm her down.'_

 _'Oh,' the five-year-old boy replied. He stroked the head of the baby who was hugging him. 'Don't be afraid, Lee. Daddy says no one would ever dare to hurt a Luthor, and you're a Luthor now.' Lex took her hand and pulled her out of the room. 'You can sleep with me. If some monster appears, we'll kill it with my LexLaser.'_

 _Lena smiled slightly, finally closing the door, knowing that her memory ended there. She walked away quickly, thinking of so many things that it was very easy to ignore her feelings._

* * *

 **Batwoman**

 **12:30 PM**

Lex Luthor's old computer would have been quite difficult to handle if Kate had not been familiar with the code patterns used by LuthorCorp years ago. It had always been especially hard to decipher Lex. Kate was sure that without Lena it would have taken hours. _There's no one who understands this more than she does._ The first thing she did was reread all the notes of the case, both hers and Maggie's, after encrypting them properly to avoid hacking. _There's not one that I haven't read a thousand times._ Everything always went back to Lillian's journal, its strange and almost unintelligible note and the rest of its disordered and ungrammatical composition, as if it were the delusions of a madwoman. _If it's not fucking hard to decipher, it's not made by a Luthor._

Kate took the book again, leaving it open on her lap as she compared it to the translated version on the computer. The red-haired woman reread Lillian's note, wondering if the key to deciphering the rest would not be hidden in that simple page. _Assuming Lillian Luthor really wanted to leave a legible record and all this is not just a waste of time_. Kate took a deep breath and cleared her mind, forcing herself to stop thinking like a soldier and be a detective. She had to enter Lillian's mind. Understand the mind of a psycho genius, who had kidnapped a baby and given another to the worst killers that once existed.

 _Why did she leave this journal? Why leave evidence of your worst secret? Did she want this?_ Kate spun in the chair, looking around, at the darkness of the lair, the tools on the tables, Lena lying unconscious a few feet to her right. _Unless she wanted us to find it. For Lena to find it, decipher it. Literally it's written in her biological mother's language._ Kate reread the note in Banen, studying the form of the words instead of their meaning. _There's something here, something that Lena should be able to see but can't. And if it has to do with the translation? The human language is too fluid, too complex, to believe that our translation is perfect_.

"Mhn," Lena moaned on her right. Kate turned to look at her, finding the brunette moving in her dreams, as if she were in the middle of a nightmare.

Kate got up and approached her, putting a hand on her forehead, unable to avoid feeling a little guilty. "Lena, you're hot, and not in the good way," said Kate, not knowing if the other woman could hear her.

"Ke..."

"It's Kate." She tried to shake her, regretting letting herself be convinced and have knocked her out. "C'mon, wake up and use your brain on something more useful."

But the brunette did not open her eyes, her pale lips moving slightly, muttering something that the soldier woman could not hear. Kate brought her ear to Lena's mouth to hear, but the only word she understood was 'key'.

 _What are you trying to tell me?_ Kate moved away from the unconscious woman and returned to the computer quickly. She searched for the translation of the word 'key' in Banen. _Mishin._ Returning to the original material, she made a search of the word. _It's the same word used for 'door'. That means..._

"I knew it," said Kate, getting up from her chair. "I have to-"

One cough got her attention. Turning, Kate found Lena sitting up slowly, her arm over her mouth trying to control a strong cough. Kate approached quickly, and patted her on the back. "You're good?"

"I've got a terrible headache."

"I hereby remind you that it was your idea to knock you out." Kate bent down, looking for some wound on her head. _Her bruise is already healing_. "You'll be fine. Listen, you were talking and said 'key'. I looked for it, and look what I found." They both stood up and walked to the computer. Lena seemed a little absent, but Kate attributed it to the punch. "In Banen the words 'key' and 'door' are written the same, 'mishin.' What if A1, A2, B1 and T1 don't refer to the door, but to some...?"

"Keys."

"Did Lillian say it?"

"She used metaphors for a two-year-old girl. I know what I have to do." Lena moved away a little, so she could sit carefully on the chair next to her. She searched the archives of the computer, opening a journalistic article from 2006. A report made about a woman who was a spy in World War II.

Kate saw an old, blurred photo of a very serious woman, looking at the camera with cold eyes. "Edith Prior?"

"Lillian's grandmother," Lena said in a firm, strong voice, almost completely recovered. "In short, she was the most important spy in America during the war, because she created a new way of encrypting messages, one that almost drove Alan Turing crazy. There were only three mathematical experts in the world who could decipher their messages. It was non-existent mathematics."

"Nonexistent?"

"Maths is, in itself, a thousand years old abstract construction. Lillian's grandmother created a new Mathematic, with its own rules, each time she sent a message. Lillian taught Lex and me to do it. But Lex hated it. He said it was too long for a person whose time is money."

"Is there a message in the book?"

"The whole book is the message," replied Lena rubbing her neck.

"Can you decipher it?"

The brunette woman pursed her lips, and stood up. "I need a blackboard. No, 34 blackboards. There must be some around here. Argh, really? My stupid millionaire brother had a red sun ray but not a blackboard? Forget it, I'll write on the wall. Make yourself comfortable, Kate, because we've a very long afternoon ahead."

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **11:10 AM**

The atmosphere became even more uncomfortable once Lena and Kate left the house and disappeared outside. Kara followed them with her eyes, paying full attention to the sound of their footsteps to make sure they were all right. Kal waited patiently until she looked at him. Kara could see for the first time how tired he really was.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there when you needed me, really," said Kal. "I knew Bruce would help you. I would never leave you alone, Kara."

 _You already did, you abandoned me from the first moment._ The spontaneity of her anger left her surprised, and she tried not to think about that. _No, I mustn't be unfair. He did what he could. He did what he could._ "In the long run it was the best," answered Kara, putting her hands in her pockets, touching the comforting cold surface of her family's Sphere.

"Many people have been watching me lately, since the world knows that Kara Danvers is Supergirl-"

"Superwoman."

"Superwoman, normal people have been looking in your inner circle to find my secret identity." Kal leaned against the counter, rubbing her black hair. "Everybody knows that Clark Kent and Kara Danvers were close. Everybody looks at me out of the corner of their eyes, they ask questions about you, and I'm running out of credible lies. I feel like they're watching me all the time, thousands of different people. All of them waiting," Kal sighed. "Not only me, Ma and Pa also feel watched all the time. Conspirators, reporters, fans. And they shouldn't be under so much stress at their age. Even Lois is having problems, and she's a reporter. I have to protect them more than ever. I can't let the same thing that happened to James happen to them."

Hearing her first boyfriend's name made the hairs on her neck stand up, a sensation of ice running through her veins. "I should have saved him."

"It wasn't your fault, Kara."

"I know, I didn't kill him, but I could have saved him. We lost James because our friendship made him a target. They wanted to destroy my life as Kara Danvers and they did, Kal-El." She stood upright. "Many innocent people died, and more will die if I don't stop Veritas. I won't lose anyone else, not one innocent life more. Lena, Kate and I will finish this."

Kal gave her a very serious look for a minute, as if it was not what he wanted to hear.

"What?"

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about." He approached, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I'm worried about you."

Kara looked at him as if he had grown two more heads and they were singing praises to Rao. "You know I can take care of myself."

"I don't mean that, I think what happened in National City has left you... stressed out and I understand." Her cousin stood up straight, all traces of his worries disappearing to be replaced by Superman's firm determination. "Let me help you."

Kara mentally counted to three, filling her lungs with air. "You can't, Kal."

"Or course I can. We're reporters, Kara, we can solve this as reporters. We'll make public all you know about Veritas. If they're exposed, we can bring them to justice, make them spend the rest of their lives in prison for what they did."

 _The Anti-Monitor would still want to kill Lena, our problems would only be replaced by others._ Kara shook her head. "Your friend Bruce told us something similar, look how it ended: his wife kidnapped, his daughter hiding, his sons away and he's in prison. Not getting involved in this is the only way you can help me, Kal. I can't worry about you as well."

"We can get Bruce out of prison, discreetly. We can-"

"No," she said firmly. "There's no 'us' this time, Kal. They're different, it's what your friend couldn't understand. If your solution is just to find them to lock them up, and knowing you well, it is, I have to ask you to stay out."

"They're earthlings, Kara, of course I want to act according to their law: they must be judged and locked up."

"It's more complicated than that."

"Who convinced you of that? Lena?"

"I think for myself, Kal-El!"

"You are making a mistake. Look, it's too personal for you. Your friends, your city, murdered by her sister. You're filled with anger, but we can't afford to break the law. You know that-"

"Take back what you said," said Kara closing her eyes tightly and clenching her fist. At the confused silence of her cousin, she continued. "There's no relationship between my girlfriend and the monster that killed half of my friends and kidnapped the other half. How do you dare to use a word so sacred, so full of love, to refer to that monster? Lutessa's not her sister, neither by adoption, nor by blood. Don't ever call her her sister again."

"I don't think they think the same."

The sudden desire to shake her cousin hit her like lightning, so intense it left a tingling sensation in her hands. Kara looked away to the wall, believing that if she got him out of sight she would recover her composure.

"I'm sorry, Kara, I don't want us to fight. But you're only giving me a reason," said Kal softly. "I came because I love you, because I want to remind you that we're not vigilantes. We don't hide, we don't take the law into our own hands. We protect people, even if they're our enemies. Even if nobody thanks us. We give people hope to be the best version of themselves, they trust us." He approached a couple of steps. "They can't trust you if you keep running away as if you have something to hide."

Kara could not help but let out a tired laugh. "This conversation doesn't make sense."

"Then tell me what's happening, Rao! Because nothing makes sense from my point of view!" said the man, exasperated. "They attacked your city! And you're not fighting, but hiding! Not only you, but Lena too! I don't know what's happening, Kara! And you don't tell me anything... You don't want my help... What am I supposed to think? What am I supposed to do, Kara? To sit idly by while a terrorist organization threatens my cousin? You know I can't do it, but you have to give me something, Kara. Give me something to help you."

"I already told you that you can't help me, Kal-El," said Kara approaching as well. "You can't help me! Don't you understand that there's nothing you can do to defeat them your way? If you go against them, they won't kill you, but everything you love and everything you fought so many years to build. But you're Superman, and you wouldn't give up. Then they'll kill all those who spoke to you throughout your life, but you're Superman, you wouldn't give up. Then they'll kill random people, but you're Superman, you wouldn't give up, never. You'd keep fighting until the end, and it'd be at that moment when they kill you!" She took a deep breath. "You really want to help me? Protect the world while I take care of the problem with people who can help me, and don't. you dare. judge me."

"How? Getting revenge on Lutessa Luthor? Do you want to kill her? Are you listening to yourself? We don't do that!"

"I've killed before, remember!?" she said, extending her arms. "I killed White Martians, I killed Daxamites, I killed my own uncle, Non, and each of those times was because there was no other way. Why would Lutessa be different!?"

"Because it's a human!" exclaimed Kal. "This is how this world works, Kara! The moment you hurt a human, whoever it is, humanity will fear you forever, without turning back, and you will be giving the reason to all those who once said that we're dangerous to them. Lex Luthor, Ronald Dump, people who hate us for being aliens."

"At least they'll be alive to hate me!" shouted Kara. _I don't know what I'm saying anymore. This discussion is getting out of hand. I need to stop or I could say something I'll regret._ "I'll do everything I can to stop them without hurting anyone, Kal, but you know I won't hesitate if I have to choose. Happy endings are over."

Kal turned around and put his fists on the table. "Be careful, Kara, you could become what you have fought all these years," he said quietly. "El mayarah."

Kara had to look at the back of his neck, and force herself not to give in to her desire to tell him the whole truth. _Maybe one day you'll know what I am doing for you, but today won't be that day._ "Where I have to go, you can't follow me. I know you, cousin." _And you will never be willing to do what it takes to get rid of the Anti-Monitor._ " You're going to have to trust me this time. If you can't do it, we don't have anything else to talk about."

Kal did not turn around for the next few seconds. Kara could hear the beating of his heart slowly, as if his blood was getting too thick to flow.

"I won't hesitate to call you if I think you can help me," said Kara calmly. _I beg you to trust me._

Her cousin remained silent, rubbing his hands. "You will always be my family, Kara... You have to know one thing," he said in a deadpan voice. "When J'onn gave me all the Kryptonite years ago, I didn't destroy it all. I was going to, but I thought of Zod, Non, all the Kryptonian criminals that could still be out there, and I kept a small amount under the Fortress." He turned to look at her, paler than Kara remembered ever seeing him. "The Fortress is a mess. Kelex turned off the computers and they couldn't access the most important information, but the Kryptonite is gone, my parents' statues are destroyed, and the Sphere of the House of El has disappeared," he pressed his lips and looked at the floor. "I can't allow them to return there, so I ordered Kelex to deactivate it until further notice. The Fortress is just a glacier now."

"Yesterday at Arkham, a ninja woman had Kryptonite weapons. At least now I know where they got it from," she said softly. "And don't worry about the Sphere, I actually took it." Kara took it out of her pocket, holding it in front of her cousin's face. "It was the only thing in the whole place that I couldn't leave there."

"That's a relief," he said, the corners of his lips rising for less than a second. "I know how much it means to you."

Kara held it tightly in her hand, still marveling at how pretty it looked with the light of a yellow sun reflecting off its surface. "Grandfather spent hours telling me stories about our ancestors. I can remember them all, even the most boring ones. Van-El, our grandfather's grandfather, who found the key to defeat Brainiac. Don-El, the first captain of our police. Shu-El, the creator of the Codex. Even Bethgar Erok-El, in Krypton's dawn, the founder of our House, when the Codex didn't exist yet and the Bethgars ruled us. Our grandfather..." _Was he a good man? Did he know what was going to happen? He also left us die?_ "...he loved me, and he would have loved you too. To have this with me, this small part of our House, reminds me that our family never gives up. They fight until the end."

Kal said nothing, but his eyes still had a reflection of sadness. "I believe in you, Kara," he said softly. "I just wish you believed in me the same way."

Kal turned around and walked to the back door, into the garden, stopping in the middle of the lawn and turning to look at her for a moment. Then Kara saw him take off at full speed, no doubt being less than a blur for any human eye. Kara took a deep breath, ignoring the small pinch of discomfort that pressed against her heart, not knowing if it was remorse, fear, or a mixture of both. _It'll be worth it when we find the Door. I must concentrate on the Door. Destroy the Anti-Monitor and Veritas. Save Lena. Save Lena. Save Lena._

She ran out the door at full speed, on the way to the street to return to Lena and Kate. When she crossed the beach, she took a hotdog from a seller, leaving in his hand a five-dollar bill. _I hate eating while I run_ , the Kryptonian thought as she ate it in three bites. The sounds around her mingled in their usual cacophony, each echoing in her mind as she leapt and flew over the river at full speed. _*'I prefer to vote for Dump, Jennifer'* *'Then I told her...'* *'I love you, little one'* *'The Walking Dead is dead, dude'* *'News Flash: The Amazons...'*_

Kara stopped suddenly behind a building, almost clashing against a pelican. The bird cawed furiously in front of her face, and Kara looked at it with embarrassment. "I'm sorry." The bird turned its face and went on its way. Kara descended quickly, before someone looked up and saw her, stopping behind a very big lady who watched the news through the glass of an appliance store. Kara pulled up the hood of her coat, trying not to attract attention as she watched the television, where two reporters stared at her.

 _*'Is it confirmed that the Amazons landed in Greece?'*_

 _*'It's confirmed, Tommy. TVPlanet, who is broadcasting from Greece right now, confirms that a delegation of twenty Amazons has gone to meet with President Victoria Xipolitakis, among whom are Charis and Philomela of Themyscira, two of the three women called The Circle, rebel leaders and responsible for the murder of the royal family and an unconfirmed number of Amazons of Bana-Mighdall; as well as the disappearance of two American citizens: Detective Margaret Sawyer and Alexandra Danvers, better known as Kara Danvers's adoptive sister, or as CatCo calls her now, Superwoman.'*_

Kara concentrated on the photograph at the top of the screen, taken from distance. Charis's face was clearly visible.

 _*'Official sources say that they came in peace, seeking an audience with their nation of origin'*_

 _*'Audience? Audience for what? Do they plan to go to war?'*_ asked the other reporter. _*'They got rid of the previous Queen and want to conquer new horizons?'*_

 _*'Nobody knows yet, Pat.'*_

 _*'They could be a threat to our nation, our lifestyle, our economy, our security!'*_ exclaimed the older man. _*'Since when do the United States sit idly by while someone threatens freedom and democracy?'*_

 _*'Pat...'*_

 _*'The only question here is: what are we going to do?'*_

Kara clenched her fists and teeth, looking at the photograph of one of the women guilty of the reason that Alex was not by her side. That Lena had lost her family, twice. _I know who you are, and you don't want anything good._ Sighing silently, Kara started running again.

* * *

 **Kara Zor-El**

 **12:45 PM**

Kara came running fast to the center of the bunker through the tunnel, stopping by the computer and letting the cold underground air be a relief against her tense muscles, hardened with worry. "Lena, Kate, listen. I think-What the heck?"

She did not expect to find her girlfriend on a ladder two meters above the floor, writing furiously what appeared to be equations ( _what the hell are those numbers?_ ) on the wall with a blue marker. Kate was sitting on the floor with a pile of papers around her, sorting them in rows and columns. A closer look made her recognize the pages of the journal. Both turned to look at her.

"What is all this?" asked the Kryptonian.

Kate stood up, trying not to step on the pages. "A new branch of maths invented for the sole purpose of fucking us... Beware of stepping on something."

"Kara," said Lena, beginning to descend the ladder quickly. "Good thing you came back. Tell me, according to the Kryptonian multiplication of parables, how are the values of- _Ah!_ "

Lena lost her balance and fell backward, letting out a squeak. Less than a second later Kara was behind her, trapping her in her arms and floating two feet off the floor. She could hear the earthling's heart racing in her chest, her fear evaporating rapidly. "Potsticker, are you okay? You know you should be careful with ladders."

"I'm fine," said Lena quickly. Kara took a moment longer than necessary to put her back on the top of the ladder, comforted by the simple pleasure of touching her a little. "I know how Lillian encrypted the book," said Lena. "Equations with a new kind of math. I need you to help me, this could take me too long alone."

Kate cleared her throat.

"With Kate's invaluable and indispensable help." Lena rolled her eyes. Kara could not help but smile a little. "I need your super brain."

"Actually, I... have to tell you something," replied Kara, watching her girlfriend's expression change from concentrated genius to worried genius.

"Has something bad happened?" asked Lena seriously, losing the brightness in her eyes.

Kara was about to tell her what she had seen on television, before quickly shaking her head. "No, you just have to know that maybe I can't keep up with you. The last time I saw such advanced math was on Krypton fifteen years ago... Well, my father used to teach me every day, but-"

"Don't be silly, you're the smartest person I know, it's literally one of your powers. Two hours ago you were building a quantum radio on your own and you were totally exhausted. We can do it together," said Lena, putting a red marker in her hand. "Now put your super brain to work."

"Okay," she replied in a falsely optimistic tone, which she hoped would sound genuine enough. _I can't give you more bad news. Not now. It'll have to wait._

* * *

 **Polly Troy**

 **2:03 pm**

Looking around like a hawk, the warrior made sure to hold the young prince's hand tightly so as not to lose him in the crowd of people moving quickly around them in the streets. Although Hippolyta had already noticed days ago that people in that country never looked around, that crowd looked different, frantically hurried.

They had walked for a long time, because the Amazon did not trust those yellow beasts called taxis and was not willing to risk the prince's safety in an environment she could not control. "According to the position of the sun, we are arriving."

"And according to Google Maps, it's on the next street," answered the prince, avoiding the crowd, bending his head. Hippolyta noticed that the young man also looked upset, paler, his grip tightening at times.

"I protect you with my life," said Hippolyta, stopping in front of those colorful lamps that controlled the movement of the metal beasts.

Carter saw her out of the corner of his eye. "It's not that, I'm not afraid of Toyman."

"The brave do not fear cowards."

"But look at the people." Carter had to move to avoid being pushed by a whole family. "Last time people were like this, something bad happened. A lot of people died. I lost all my friends. Something isn't right." He touched his pocket, where he had the knife she had given him. "We need to find Mom, Toyman's going to try to hurt her and Kara's gone."

"We will not allow it, young prince." The green light finally changed to red and Hippolyta moved quickly, dodging feverish people with worried faces. _This cannot be the work of a single pathetic man. What is happening?_

The heir, pulling her hand, led her to the left along the main street to another one, smaller and less filled with people. The sun was bright in that city, as if Apollo was especially infatuated with its inhabitants. Both were sticky when they reached their destination, a large, elegant building that had been a hotel three weeks ago, but had not reopened since the massacre. The security guards saw them arrive long before approaching, and ran towards them to keep the prince safe, shielding him until they reached the hotel and making him enter quickly.

Inside, Hippolyta noticed that none of the guards wore their characteristic black clothes. All were dressed to go unnoticed. The Empress was sitting on the sofa in the lobby, wearing an elegant blue suit, not one of her hairs out of place. Upon seeing her son, she stood up and walked towards him, touching his face and hair. "Carter, at last. I was worried about you. Are you okay?"

"I'm okay. They've got to catch him, he wants to sabotage you. But the threat isn't public yet. If he makes demands, don't give in. Everyone is watching you now," he said with his serious young face. Not for the first time, Hippolyta admired his maturity.

"I know, honey." She kissed his forehead. "I'll do it. Ms. Troy, we have to talk, come with me."

Hippolyta let herself be guided to the farthest corner of the hall, away from doors and windows, under the watchful eye of the guards. She knew immediately that this was going to be bad. There was no bad sign in the Empress's body language, but her eyes were less sparkling, her lips less expressive.

"I chose to take the safest path instead of the shortest one. I apologize if our delay has worried you, your highness," Hippolyta apologized.

"That's not the problem. I knew you were fine, Carter has a tracker on his emergency phone." At her confused face, she added. "Only I know of its existence. It's not my first encounter with Schott. It was a good thing you left the phones."

"So what is the problem?"

"Believe me, I'm sorry to give you bad news, but the Amazons have left the island," she said. Hippolyta felt her bones contract. "King Arthur went to get information with some old friends. A large group is in Greece as we speak, they haven't attacked, but it doesn't take much common sense to know that they didn't go shopping."

"That explains the unrest of your people," answered Hippolyta. "Do you know if in that group there is a bald woman with scars on her face?"

"I've seen the images and no, Alkyone's not there. Maybe she's hidden."

"Alkyone doesn't hide," she shook her head. "This is something else."

The corner of the Empress's lip rose slightly. "Should we worry about a possible invasion?"

 _I wish I could know._ "I have no knowledge of what Alkyone wants to do with her new power."

Empress Cat averted her eyes with a pensive expression. "Well, in that case, let's clean the house before receiving visitors. A psycho has threatened my son." She moved away towards the guards. "I want all the staff watching Carter without blinking. We change hotels in ten minutes, we won't stay anywhere more than half an hour until some half decent police put their hands on Toonman's beige clothes and get him back to the hole where he belongs."

Hippolyta fixed her eyes on the child she had to protect, determined to take better care of him than she had taken care of her own people.

* * *

 **The Stressed Alien**

 **8:48 PM**

When the minutes turned into hours, and the hours turned into an entire afternoon, Kara found herself suppressing her first glimpses of hunger as she forced herself to focus on those new quantum inequations she had in front of her, her right hand pulling a lock of her blond hair. _Matrices doesn't have a permutative quality, they have to be in perfect order. But here I can change the order if I exchange the numbers with their quantum counterparts, and I get the opposite result. Then-Ahh! What the hell was I thinking when I stopped Diana from killing Lillian!?_

Ten seconds passed in which Kara's mind went blank, watching the numbers in front of her as if they were floating in a cloud around her. Her brain was demanding her to go back to work, to finish, but Kara felt unable to focus her eyes and move her hand. _It's too much._ A distant buzz was all she heard, as if the entire planet had disappeared. _I have to continue. I have to continue._

Lena sighed loudly beside her, stretching and rubbing her wrist with a calm, even optimistic expression. Kara clung to that small familiar gesture, Lena's little smile of scientific satisfaction, to return to reality. "My part is done," said Lena. "We just need yours, Kara. How are you doing?" She came over and glanced at her side of the wall. Kara saw that she pressed her lips a bit, like an elementary school teacher evaluating an exam. "You're almost done, let me help you."

"Sure," she answered softly, moving a little.

Lena watched her out of the corner of her eye, her blue marker over the equation as if she could rip the number off the wall. "You look a little pale."

"I'm fine," answered Kara, erasing the last numbers of the equation, only to rewrite them seconds later. _I'm not._ "I'm just concentrated."

"Are you hungry?"

"Not yet. I'm fine, Potsticker. We're almost done. I just hope the next time I solve a math problem it's under better circumstances."

"Maths doesn't fit with stress," Lena bent down, so she could continue writing on what was left of the wall. "You're better than my mathematicians, just so you know."

"And prettier too," Kara joked, smiling.

Lena turned to look at her fully, a bittersweet smile painted on her lips.

"What? What's wrong?" asked Kara.

"Nothing, it's just that..." She bit her lip. "I miss your smile. Everything seems brighter when you smile. I miss that feeling."

Kara twisted her mouth slightly, the shadow of a feeling of guilt pricking her belly. "I'm sorry I'm not in the mood to smile today," she said dryly.

"Nobody is," replied Lena, returning to concentrate on her calculations. "But we'll be again one day, I promise."

Kara felt the pang of guilt turn quickly into fury, before placating it with serenity. _Nothing will be the same again, Lena. Veritas killed Kara Danvers and in her place there's only me._ She forced herself to push those thoughts away from her mind. _I won't even have a life to rebuild if I don't do everything possible to end this._

Kara looked back, smelling Kate before hearing her walk down the tunnel toward them with a couple of bags of food in her hands. The red-haired woman entered the bunker in silence, her gaze meeting Kara's. "You didn't even notice I was gone, did you?"

"I must've been too focused," replied Kara, trying to ignore the smell of cooked meat.

Kate sat on the floor, next to the pages of the book perfectly separated into ten rows and twenty-four columns. "I went for a walk." She looked at Lena out of the corner of her eye, who did not look up from her calculations. "You're not hungry, Lena?"

"No. I'm neither thirsty nor sleepy," she answered distractedly. "Monitor must be taking care of that."

"Kara should eat," said Kate, looking in her direction, as if she was scolding her in silence. Kara did not like it, it reminded her too much of her sister. "It's been a while."

"I'm fine," the blonde replied, refusing to fall into the trap. But her stomach decided it was the best time to betray her and growled furiously, a perfectly audible noise. _Dammit._

Lena finally looked up, slightly amused with her uncontrollable appetite. "Take a break and eat something, darling. I'll finish this." She brushed her hand with hers in the slightest of caresses. "Keep your strength to the fullest."

A fleeting feeling of warmth spread across her chest, rewarding Lena with a small smile. "Alright."

Kara walked away from her side, heading towards Kate and sitting on the floor in front of her. She took what smelled like a roast beef sandwich. The first bite tasted like heaven, Kara had to remind herself to eat slowly, avoiding Kate's intense stare. But of course, Batwoman had a look that could pierce her like Kryptonite, and Kara felt increasingly uncomfortable.

"I know you know," said the redhead. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"I was going to, but look how far we've come," she cocked her head at the brunette. "Lena needs to concentrate now, I'll tell her later," she whispered.

"Are you usually so flexible with the truth?" Batwoman asked with her eyebrow raised.

"I'm not lying to her," said Kara, leaning forward. "I'm waiting for the opportune moment."

"Her people could be starting a war while we talk."

"On the other side of the world. One problem at a time, Kate," said Kara, maintaining firmness.

Batwoman also leaned forward, her dark green eyes severe and calm. "If we're going to be together in this, we have to be honest with each other. That's how a team works."

"Look, I know Lena. Now she's not using any weird superpower of any omnipotent entity. She's using her brain, and the first thing you learn when you live with a scientist is that if it's not an emergency, it can wait a couple of minutes. This is not an emergency."

"It could be in a few hours."

"At last! Yes!" exclaimed Lena throwing her marker away. "I have the equation!"

Kara saw Kate drop her things and jump to the neatly arranged pages a few meters away. Kara also stood up quickly. "Are you sure?" she asked Lena.

"Yes," she said, taking another marker out of her pocket. "I need you to go to the computer and use the encryption algorithm with your speed. Don't put it in any language, that could alter the result. We have to look for its meaning."

"Sure," answered Kara, flying toward the computer and following her girlfriend's instructions.

"Alright," said Lena scratching her cheek with the red marker, accidentally staining it. "We've four unknowns to find. Kate, I have to replace them with the book's letters to get another letter, and multiply them by the page number by dividing the number of columns-"

"Lena, spare me the details! Don't explain it, just do it!"

"Letter twenty-seven on the first page."

Kate took a second to respond. "K."

Kara wrote it.

Lena took a deep breath. "Letter 15 on the second page."

"H."

The three continued like this for long, thick minutes, so eternal that Kara felt transported to a place beyond her own mind, as if she were seeing everything from the outside. A strange smell awoke her senses, so deeply forgotten that she almost could not recognize it. _Why am I sweating?_ Kara shook her head and forced herself to concentrate. When Kate said the last letter, Kara used her super speed to calculate and write all the combinations in fifty seconds, trying not to break the keyboard by accident. When she was finished she leaned back in the seat, sighing deeply to make sure that enough oxygen came to every cell in her body. Then Kara got up from the chair, looking briefly at the other two women in the room, and turning away from the computer so they could see as well. She herself felt unable to stop looking at the screen, wondering how only four words could contain the rest of her life.

 **ATLANTIS-BANAMIGHDALL-KAHNDAQ-AZARATH**

Kate ran a hand through her blood-colored hair. "Are you sure?"

"They're mathematics, they're exact," said Kara. "If these are the key's locations, we could figure out where the door is. I have a theory. I think-"

Kara was interrupted by the sound of a short, humorless laugh that came from Lena's throat, without strength, as if fatigue had finally reached her. Her girlfriend bit her lower lip as she approached the computer. "That bitch." Lena bowed, as if seeing the result up close could change it. "Typical of Lillian, she left this trail to the keys because she wanted me to do the dirty work for her, but why teach me the most difficult encryption code in the world and not put the full information in? She's manipulating me even in a coma... No, wait." To Kara's surprise, instead of typing on the keyboard, Lena used the marker on the glass screen. Below the words obtained, Lena wrote _'_ Black Magician-King Wetbeard-Human Goddess-Temple-WELL'. "The King Wetbeard sank his city so they couldn't find it." Lena drawn an arrow to 'Atlantis'.

Kara cleared her throat. "Bana-Mighdall means Temple of Women."

"Another was hidden in the temple of the savages..." Lena draw a straight line from city to the description of her memory. "So that nobody dared to go and look for it."

Kate approached. "Kahndaq is the name of an old Jewish legend, about a group of people who abandoned Moses in the exodus and founded their own city. The ruler was a magician named Black Adam, but it's only a legend."

"Like Amazons, Atlanteans, Aliens, Multiverse and global warming." Lena drew a line on the screen again. "We'll have to look for it."

"And I understand that Azarath's goddess dies and is reborn, so she's 'human'," said Kate.

Lena used the marker one last time, then wiped her wet hands on her pants. "Five words. Four keys and one door. We know a gap is needed to find them, so-" Lena went blank. Kara was beginning to worry until she saw that she was putting her hand on her neck and, to her surprise, taking off the medallion, leaving it in front of her eyes. The silver circle glowed despite the dim light in the bunker, illuminating her green eyes. "I think we already have a key."

In the blink of an eye, Kara was in front of her with the object in her hands, looking at it as intensely as if she were trying to count each of its atoms. She traced the engraving of the goddess and the well with her fingers again, feeling pressure behind her eyes, as if something in her subconscious was trying to scream.

Lena looked at Kate. "Lillian did more than kidnap me that night. She had everything: location, opportunity, knowledge... a gap." Lena gently took the medallion from Kara's hands, putting it back on. "It's the reason why it connects me to the Monitor. The energy field of its proximity is capable of emitting a quantum echo at the atomic level, something similar to what happened to the atomic structure of the planet's surface after the atomic bomb. This is the key of Bana-Mighdall." Her lips widened with a smile. "It was with us all this time. Lillian hid it in the well of our old house. Everything always comes down to the metaphor of the well." Lena looked at the screen again. "They can be referring to Veritas this time."

"No," said Kara, her mind lighting up. "It's not a metaphor. It's a thousand years old well. A giant well, on the mountain in Themyscira." Lena's eyes widened in surprise. Kara continued. "I saw it while you were distracted with your grandmother and mother. The door should be as old as humanity itself, even more. And according to the book 'What do we know about the Amazons?', Themyscira is one of the oldest cities in the world. It says it was inhabited by the gods before the Amazons."

Kate blinked rapidly. "How reliable is that old book? Don't forget that no one knew anything for certain about Amazons until Wonder Woman arrived in New York in 1980."

"In fact, my mother was in London at the end of World War II," said Lena, her eyes shining with that special pride that Kara had seen developing over the past few months. "The book is truthful. It was written by Professor William Marston and his two wives in 1945, after interviewing her."

"Two wives?"

"Long story, but it's true. Themyscira is the best-preserved ancient city in the world. It's literally over Tartarus, but it doesn't seem like enough reason to believe that the Door is there."

"It was on the temple of Aletheia," replied Kara. "Veritas. I'd say it sounds reasonable," she said dryly.

"It's not about whether it's reasonable. We have to be sure in the case of Themyscira, where an entire army will be more than happy to kill us. If we go, we couldn't get out."

"They couldn't do anything against me."

"Don't underestimate them."

"I don't. I can take all their weapons off before they even blink and throw them into space. They wouldn't even know what hit them, and you know it."

"Kara, they have magic now. You remember magic? It's your second weakness. If we make a mistake and the door is not there, we'll lose the surprise factor and then they'll kill us."

"My instinct tells me it's on Themyscira, just trust me," said Kara, extending her arms.

Lena sighed. "Alright, we'll look there."

Kate cleared her throat. "It's important to trust our instincts now that we can't be sure of anything, but we'll cross that bridge when the time comes. Now we have to deal with the keys."

"We have to go look for them," said Kara, looking up at the computer.

Kate nodded. "That's not a problem. We'll manage to get to an underwater realm, a city that's just a myth and another dimensional plane. But there's no possibility of doing it without the word spreading. Veritas would know what we're doing, and that'd ruin everything. We've no hope without the surprise factor, and we can't let anyone else know about the Monitor." Kate looked at the floor, her emerald eyes cold at some distant point. "I may have a solution, but you won't like it, Lena."

"Tell me," she replied in a hurry.

"We'll tell everyone that you're looking for people to help you recover Themyscira."

Lena was silent before letting out a short and abrupt laugh, covering her mouth. "I can't even begin to explain why it's a bad plan," she said, lowering her hand. "You know I was only in Themyscira for a week, don't you? And that a year ago I didn't even know who my biological parents were? No one would ever buy it. Look at me, Kate, do I look like Daenerys Targaryen?"

"No, you look like a princess whose people are about to become a global threat, someone who has a reason to fight back and who can offer a solution. In other words, a politician. Sansa Stark. And in the war, appearances are everything," said Kate approaching. "If you go to them for support, no one can question our true motives. They'll believe you, and we could find the keys."

"I'm with Kate on this," Kara nodded. "Protecting the secret is too important, and with a little help, we wouldn't be alone when we go to Themyscira. We'd have a greater shot."

Lena closed her eyes for three seconds. "Superwoman and Batwoman," she opened her eyes again. "Have you completely lost your fucking minds?! We would be putting more innocent lives in danger!" said Lena with such rage that Kara felt a shudder. "I'm a poison, remember? Remember all the people who died in National City? How many lives? Just to kill me? And here I am!"

"People will continue dying with or without you. This way we can protect them. With their help we have an opportunity," answered Kate firmly. "You know this is war."

"Our war. Mine, Kara's, and yours too now. But nobody else's. I won't put more targets on innocent people's backs. I'll do anything to prevent more deaths, even reduce our chances. We can't go with people who don't know anything about this, take away something that they may not even know they have, and put them in danger. It's disgusting, Kate," said Lena, her pulse lightly accelerated, her face hard as stone. "We'll look for another way."

Kate did not answer, and instead looked at Kara, extending her hands, insisting once again that it was her who should tell Lena what was happening with the Amazons. Lena did not miss that exchange of glances, and raised an eyebrow at Kara. "What?"

Kara sighed. "Come with me, I have to show you something."

Both approached the computer, erasing the words written with marker and opening the program that allowed them to enter Internet without leaving any trackable record. She entered the Daily Planet's web page, because she did not feel the courage to face any memory of her normal life at CatCo's. The live broadcast was in the first section, like all bad news in recent weeks. Kara clicked and waited for her girlfriend's vital signs to begin to alter.

 _*'-arrived in Greece almost ten hours ago, but still little is known about the surprise visit of the Amazons to the outside world. Are they coming in peace? Is their plan to attack? The countries of the world have their eyes set on Greece. The president has been parleying with the emissaries throughout the afternoon. We expect some type of statement in the next hours, either by President Victoria Xipolitakis or the new government of Themyscira, The Circle. While many speculate what's going on, the White House hasn't commented so far. American public opinion is currently divided in positive and negative opinions about the recent revolution in Wonder Woman's birthplace, disappeared along with Lena Luthor of Themyscira, who was confirmed as her biological daughter four months ago, Supergirl, recently renamed as Superwoman, and two American citizens: Margaret Jamie Sawyer and Alexandra Jan Danvers, Kara Danvers's sister, last seen on Paradise Island before the revolution. The spectator must be reminded that Amazons have been an isolated community for thousands of years and that the only time they left their island in large numbers was during the many wars they've had with their sister tribe Bana-Mighdall, which-...'*_

"When were you going to tell me this?" asked Lena with a slow pulse, teeth clenched, fingers trembling and a strong pressure behind her skull.

Kara got up and stood in front of her, checking that she looked as furious as her ears told her. "I wasn't going to hide it, you know it. I just wanted to wait for the right moment."

"And when was it going to be that moment? When Alkyone knock on our door to finish what she started?"

"We were busy with something more urgent! We were finally moving on to something worth it! I figured that was more useful than making you feel even worse for something we can't fix, something that could wait."

"A possible world war could wait!? You should have told me immediately!"

"You had to concentrate! What would you have done if you had known it ten hours ago? Would you have changed something? No. You couldn't have focused on those damn mathematics that nobody else knows because you'd be feeling guilty for something you can't control and not-"

 _ ***BANG BANG***_ Kate pulled out her gun and fired twice at the ceiling, frowning. Lena was startled and Kara instinctively covered her with her body, before realizing that the redhead just wanted to get their attention. "I can't think of a worse moment for a lovers' quarrel," said Kate returning her gun to the holster. "What's done is done. Behave as emotionally mature adults, and make peace now so we can move forward with the collection of real problems we have on our hands. Count to ten, think about why you're fighting and apologize."

Kara felt like an embarrassed idiot, arguing over such a foolish thing. "I'd never lie to you. I wanted to wait before putting another load on your shoulders, to make it a little easier for a couple of hours until we were finished. I'm sorry."

Lena's face relaxed. "I'm sorry too. I exaggerated, it was probably the best to take care of one thing at a time. I know you wouldn't lie to me... Just tell me right away next time, we can't be misinformed for a second."

"Maybe I should have been a marriage counselor instead of a soldier," said Kate, arching her back. "The point is that our little war against these terrorists is about to stop being secret. The Amazons didn't go out into the world to say hi and drink tea. Amazons, Veritas, gods, maybe even some governments, all of them will try to kill Lena. They'll do whatever it takes, you know it better than I. And sometimes, in situations as particularly bad as this, to save innocent lives you have to look them in the face and ask them to fight for you. It stinks, but it's how things are."

"I won't take any 'army' to death."

"I was thinking about a League, to be honest."

Kara reached out and stroked her shoulder, then her cheek. "Nothing will ever end if the Anti-Monitor is still free to-." Her throat closed, painful as if she had eaten fire. "There can't be another Earth-15, Lena."

Kara saw her girlfriend cross her arms and look away to the screen again, where a helicopter transmitted an image of many people at the entrance to the Hellenic Parliament, illuminated by bright lights on a hot night on the other side of the world. There were people of different colors, ages and sizes. It was about to dawn in Greece, but there were as many people on the streets as if it were broad daylight. _If the Amazons went there to attack, they'll kill them all._ Kara noticed Lena's eyes moisten, rubbing them quickly to keep the tears from forming.

"You have to stop thinking about people who might die and convince yourself that you can save them," said Kara. "Because only you can do it, Lena, nobody else. Only then all the dead won't have died in vain. My cousin would never understand, and that's why I didn't tell him about this."

"You lied to Clark?"

"I didn't tell him anything." Kara shook her head. "But I know that he will know sooner or later, and that he won't accept that things are done in a way that is not his. He wants to lock up Veritas as normal criminals, as if that could fix everything."

"And my dumb cousin already taught us how that ends," said Kate sarcastically.

"Clark said the massacre affected me," Kara continued. "He's right, it affected us both, maybe too much, and that's why we're willing to take the risk."

Kara waited in silence until Lena looked at her again, looking older than she really was. "It's pretty clear," she whispered. "My grandmother said it: sometimes you have to choose between something bad and something worse. And she was right, like you. Is this a game of chess? Then people are the pieces."

"That's not true, Lena, don't-"

She simply turned around and walked to the ladder, sitting on the second step. Lena clasped her hands in front of her and observed the calculations on the wall, as if searching for an equation for hope. Then she touched the medallion on her neck and calmed down. "We already know what we have to do."

"We have a long journey ahead," said Kate. The woman was so silent that Kara had almost forgotten that she was next to her. "Now that it's all said, I'll go to sleep for a few hours. My kind need to do it from time to time. Wake me up if the Amazons invade America."

"Okay," Lena nodded.

Kate disappeared inside her car, leaving Kara alone with that thick silence. For several minutes she wanted to say something, before realizing that they needed that silence to think, and with a little luck, to find some peace.

* * *

 **The Objective**

 **9:20 PM**

Lena had spent the last twenty minutes in silence, lost in thought as her hands incessantly moved the cold metal hanging from her neck. Her mind kept going back to L-Corp, the building that had been her first home since she moved to National City. The only good thing Lionel had ever given her. The familiar faces of the dozens of people she had coexisted with every day appeared as flashes in her memory. That new grad boy who had plants on his desk. The maintenance lady who used lavender essence because she knew it was her favorite. The security guard who sometimes had spots of paint on his face, because his little son used to draw on him while he slept. Since she woke up in the Fortress of Solitude, the two assassination attempts and the urgent need to hide the truth from Wayne, Lena had not had a real moment to sit down and realize that all those people would still be alive if she had not gone to work that afternoon. Their deaths had been collateral damage of Lutessa's bomb, useless, since it had not killed her despite having it tied to her body. Her only tiny consolation was that Jess had not been there. _I have to get in touch with her, find out if she's okay. Warn her to get safe. Jess is too good to suffer for me_. It was the least she could do for one of the few people who had never looked at her like a pariah. Jess had always had faith in her. She never believed that Lena was just one more Luthor who would eventually lose her mind.

Lena got up from the ladder and walked to the computer, next to Kara, who was still listening to the almost inaudible voices of the reporters covering the news in Greece. She looked at the clock, realizing that half an hour had passed without any change. People expected the Amazons to make some kind of statement before the end of the day, if they did not attack first. Lena only knew that whatever they were doing in Greece, it was not good at all. _Let this not be a war. Please, please, not a war._ Resting her eyes on Kara, she noticed that her girlfriend pretended not to be aware of each of her movements, still as a goddess watching the mortals. Lena sat next to her, and waited for her to break the silence. After three minutes she understood that she would have to do it. "I'm sorry for our fight."

"It doesn't matter," said Kara quietly. "It was the stress, too much for a single day." She sat up straight, leaving her hands in her lap. "But even if it's difficult, we have to overcome it, not let it upset us."

"I'd never let stress cloud my judgment."

"I know, but this is new for both of us. Being on our own, I mean, without the DEO, without L-Corp. It's hard, but that's the way things are."

Lena lifted both legs onto the chair. "I want to believe that everything is going to get better. I thought everything would be better when we knew where to go, we weren't supposed to involve anyone else."

"We won't be doing anything, honey, because they're all already involved, just living in the same world as those killers. One of the first things I learned shortly before putting on my cape for the first time was that we're all responsible for the world we build, and the one we want to have."

"Well, living with murderers taught me that there was nothing worse than a person willing to sacrifice other people as if they were animals. It's easy to talk about wars when they were centuries ago, or when they belong in a book or a movie. The only thing I've always wanted is to help people. Wars do the opposite."

"You care about people's lives, Potsticker. You care too much, that's why I love you. And I know that only you can break this whole circle of fear and death," said Kara, looking at her with a tiny smile. "No more death, I promise."

"You can't promise it."

"I can promise that we'll do everything possible, anything, to make the Anti-Monitor disappear." Her eyes shone with the faint light of the screen. "Without him, Veritas are no more than criminals to be locked up. I won't rest until that monster is just a bad story. I want each and every one of those killers to pay for what they've done. I won't have peace until they're gone. Kal says I want revenge. What I want is justice. So much pain can't remain unpunished."

"I know." Lena moved a little closer and gently rested her head on her shoulder. "I need it too."

Kara rested her warm cheek against her temple. Lena felt a tickle where the alien's cheek brushed her skin. "Can I ask you something, Lena?"

"Shoot."

"You know what happened in National City wasn't your fault, but you feel responsible," she said. "I think you have survivor guilt."

"That's not a question."

"I guess not," Kara shrugged.

"I don't think I have survivor's guilt," answered Lena, moving closer, seeking the comfort of her sweet smell. "I don't feel guilty for surviving, but who knows. I've never named my problems. One day I'll make some psychiatrist very rich," she said in a monotone voice. "I feel responsible for those who died, for preventing it from happening again, to avenge them."

Kara remained silent for a few seconds. "I've felt that way since I was 14 and woke up on a strange planet." Kara stretched. "You would understand it if you had seen it, but Krypton was full of the best scientific geniuses of all the galaxy Andromeda. People who could have fixed all the problems on Earth in a week, but I survived."

"You were an innocent girl, Kara. And even though your mother made many mistakes, letting you die wasn't one of them."

"I wasn't the only innocent girl on the whole planet, Lena. I was just the luckiest one," said Kara, looking down at her, concentrating on her thoughts. "Honestly, I didn't fully understand what was going on when my parents put me in that pod. I was too young to understand that I'd never see them again. I didn't imagine the farewell was forever, and when I realized it was too late. The confusion turned into sadness and then into responsibility... I 'm responsible for those who didn't survive. To do all the possible good with my life, my absolute best."

"You never told me you felt that way."

"I've never felt this way when I'm with you." She put her arm around her shoulders. "My responsibility made me Supergirl, and if you feel responsible for what happened, Lena, you shouldn't torture yourself for that. It's not just your responsibility, it's all of us'. You're not our death, Potsticker." Kara kissed her forehead. "You're our salvation."

"And that's my true responsibility."

"Yes, it is," said Kara quietly. "For all those who have died in the name of that monster, killed by cowards, and those who we must save," she said firmly. "I'll be with you till the end."

Lena had always felt comforted by Kara's wisdom. Being an alien, she had always possessed a deep understanding of the inhabitants of the world. As if she could see inside people, straight into their souls. Lena felt that Kara was seeing her that way at that moment, into her heart, where she kept all her sorrows and fears, locking them up as she had always done.

The image on the screen in front of them changed to a symbol of waiting, with the flag of Greece. Lena clasped both hands in her lap and tried to evoke feelings about the place where she was born, the native nation she had only known for a week, but whose loss felt like the absence of an internal organ. _You never see your heart, but you know it's there. I don't want to imagine what this will be like for my mother._ Lena wondered where she was, if she was suffering, how much she knew of what was happening in the world. _I wish she was here._

The president of Greece appeared in a bright room that looked like CatCo's meeting room, but more spacious and with more security guards. The president, a blonde and very young woman, more like a South American television actress than a politician, gave a brief speech reassuring the crowd and expressing her joy and honor of receiving the legendary guardians of mankind in her country, and welcoming them as their guests. Then she announced the representative of The Circle to the press.

Lena was sure that the one would appear would be Alkyone, but instead the person who took the stand and stood next to the president was Charis, wearing a ceremonial toga and nothing but quiet wisdom on her face.

"Wow," said Kara without surprise in her voice. "They learn fast for having gone thousands of years without outside contact."

"Alkyone is the one who rules Themyscira, why is not she there?" Lena frowned. "Unless they want to protect her. It could be a trap."

"Maybe, but I was referring to public opinion," said Kara. "Let's pretend that everything is normal for a moment and think like a businesswoman and a reporter. Who would you choose between Alkyone, Charis, and Philomela to stand in front of a microphone? She simply looks better than Alkyone and they know it. The minorities that control social media will love her. No American politician may publicly oppose them for fear of being attacked as a racist/xenophobe/homophobe. Even Dump has his hands tied. Charis hasn't opened her mouth yet, but she has already won the battle."

Lena frowned. "Aren't you exaggerating?"

"You don't know it because you don't have any social media, wait and see." Kara rested her face on her hand. "I can practically hear all the people on Tumblr."

Charis smiled peacefully on television. _*'I'm afraid that our statement will have to be brief, we will answer any questions when we present ourselves at the United Nations in two days. We feel fortunate and happy to be back in the land where we were born, surrounded by so many changes, but with the spirit of the place intact. A long time ago our mission was to serve and protect, to be examples to follow with our lives, before our old queen got us out of our way.'*_

"That's a lie," murmured Lena. "It was your gods."

 _*'We hereby declare our intention to resume our mission, and bring the justice of the Amazons back to the outside world. We want to go to every corner of the world, where humanity attacks itself. We will be part of the world change. To achieve that...'*_

Before her eyes, the Amazon warrior began to float on the stand. Lena leaned forward, letting out a moan. _Impossible._

 _*'In antiquity, the Gods blessed an armor, so that the best of us could carry our message of justice and peace to the outside world. Today our system is fairer. We have destroyed and melted the armor, and now each of us has a small piece of it. We all have the same rights and obligations as the others. We are all blessed. We are all emissaries. We are all Wonder Woman. And with work and dedication, we will return justice to this world once and for all. Greece has been the first to give us its support in our search for a better world. We urge other nations to follow their example. In two days, we will deal with the subject in depth, and we will give you time to think. Until then, Nations of the World, do not fear us. We are here to help.'*_

The screen changed to a reporter's voice, repeating what had happened to the new viewers. Lena could not hear a word of what he said. Kara lowered the volume, waiting for her to speak first.

"We have to destroy any evidence that we were here," said Lena, rising from the chair. "That includes the computer. Save all the important things and burn the hard drive. There must be nothing left that someone can hack. Tomorrow we're leaving."

"To where?"

"Where we can talk with the Atlantean King. We have to start somewhere," said Lena, erasing the calculations written on the walls. "We have a lot of work ahead of us."

 _If playing chess is what you want, Lutessa, it's my turn to move._

* * *

 **The Candidate for President**

 **11:50 PM**

Cat kept her eyes glued to Carter, firmly determined not to show that a psychopath's threats were going to make her retreat. Not even if a part of her, stubbornly ignored, pleaded with her to find a way to call Kara. _She can't come flying to help me every time I have problems. Not now, everything has changed_ , she thought as they entered the umpteenth new hotel of the day.

 _I hope my first shady business as president is not to order someone to make Schott disappear. He's crazy if he thinks I'll play with Carter's life._ Hippolyta had not separated more than half a meter from him all afternoon, paying no attention to anything else and barely speaking. Cat suspected that the former monarch could stab the next person who looked in Carter's direction. _Maybe a sequel to having lost all her family._

Two people waited in the lobby on this occasion. The first was her vice-presidential candidate, Genevieve Trueman, the only politician she had interviewed many times over the years and who had never lied to her. She was standing next to two silent bodyguards, searching for her gaze. The second person was standing by the marble stairs, without attracting attention, without showing his powerful nature. King Arthur stared back at her, his gaze so bright that it could not be human or positive.

Carter and his guardian sat on the couch, while Cat approached the politician. Genevieve was a woman just a little taller than her, her hair just a darker shade of blonde. They might look like relatives to strangers' eyes.

"You have imagination, that's undeniable. You've been circling the city all day. If it weren't for the Amazons, someone would have noticed."

"Oh, you know how it is. This is really just another test of strength, another foolish man trying to play who's got it bigger with a woman. He must think I'm Jennifer Lopez," said Cat, checking her clothes for nonexistent lint. "Did you do the interview?"

"They called to pass it by tomorrow, it seems that someone pulled a couple of strings."

 _Baby Lane and her ideas._ "Then why do you honor us with your company?"

"They think I can be in danger too, and right now, the safest place in town is by your side. If you don't mind, of course."

"Oh, of course not, dear. But don't get too comfortable, I'm running out of hotels and soon we'll have to start using other places. I'm particularly sure that Schott won't be willing to go up to a water tower to kidnap to my son."

The next few minutes passed as quickly as the rest of the afternoon. It did not matter that the time limit imposed by the killer was about to end, Cat was not going to be so careless to let her guard down until Schott was back in the madhouse from which he had escaped. She spent the next few minutes on the phone, answering questions from her team revealing as little information as possible, giving orders to prepare as many safe places as possible in case this took too much time. _I won't let you catch him, Mr. Schott. Never my son. Not my Carter._ Her mind was on the phone, but her eyes were continually going to the pre-adolescent sitting on the couch next to his guardian, looking tired after having been circling the city all day. There would come a time when Carter would have to sleep and they could not keep moving. _We won't reach that moment. Lucy knows what she's doing. She will catch him._

When there were five minutes left to midnight, Cat found herself unable to continue using the cellphone. Her common sense told her that the time limit was false, but she felt that, if she achieved that small victory, if it was 12 o'clock and Carter was still there and well, the other victories would seem less difficult to achieve.

 _4 minutes._ Cat took a deep breath and put away her cellphone, moving closer to the couch and sitting next to her son. Carter rested his head on her arm. "We'll be fine," her son said quietly.

Cat kissed his forehead. "I must have done something very good to make you so strong."

"No offense, but it was Hercules cartoons. What a pity they canceled it. When you're president you can order a new season, can't you?"

"Did Hercules have a 'cartoon'?" asked Hippolyta with disgust on her face. "That monster, Your Highness? Don't be fooled, there has never been, nor will there be, any viler man than Hercules."

"It can't be, the muses sung about him in the movie," said Carter with a serious face. "I even have the songs on my cell. He was a hero."

"The Muses make songs even about bread. They are always singing about everything. It's impossible to understand them when they talk."

 _2 minutes._ Cat put her arm around Carter. "No shows for you, you have to study."

"I study."

"Really?"

"Yeah, when I have time."

"When you're not watching shows, you mean."

"What is a show?" asked Hippolyta. "Are they like stories?"

"Don't you watch TV shows?" asked Carter with all the astonishment that his tiredness allowed him. "We already have something to do when this is over. Do you like sword fights?"

"We could say they are part of my life."

"Game of Thrones is your show, Polly."

 _12 o'clock_. Cat let all the air out of her lungs, feeling all the tension of the day diminish. "It's 12 o'clock," she said loudly. The two looked at her. "And Carter's here, safe and sound. Schott's not as smart as he thinks." She suppressed a small yawn. "He can't sabotage me."

The phone in her hand began to vibrate with a text message. Releasing Carter but not losing sight of him, as if he could disappear at any moment, Cat took her cell out and opened the message. She blinked a couple of times, before her face froze in stone, her hand squeezing the device as if she wanted to break it.

"Mom?" asked Carter.

"I'll be back in a moment," said Cat, getting up from the sofa and walking quickly to Susan Vasquez, who was guarding at the door. Cat caught her attention impatiently. "I have to talk to Lucy, immediately."

"Is Carter okay?"

"He's not coming for Carter," she said, showing her the phone.

Adam's wounded and frightened face felt like a stab in her gut. There were no words, only the photograph. "Who is this man?" Vasquez asked as she called Lucy in with her other hand.

"My eldest son, Adam." Cat pressed her lips together. "And if your boss doesn't find him soon, he's going to be killed by that monster. So. call. Lucy."

* * *

 **The Nurse**

 **7:08 AM**

Following the instructions of the map on the wall in the hallway, she opened on the door next to the cactus, entering the brightest part of the whole clinic. The only security guards stood next to the door of only room. The nurse's face remained empty, as if it was just one more day of work in a normal life.

Without looking at the guards, she tried to open the door. But the youngest of them, a blond man with the arms of a lumberjack, stopped her gently. "I've never seen you around here."

"With Dr. House absent, we do what we can," she replied hiding her face. "I must change Mrs. Luthor's glucosaline serum."

"It's too early."

"Let me do my job, or call your boss. I don't have time for this."

"Wait," said the other guard, a man with a serious face and bald head. "You're not a nurse, you're Lena Luthor."

 _Of course, glasses work with everyone except me_. "That's not true," said Lena, feeling a warmth growing in her chest and looking straight into their eyes. Their expressions changed. "I'm not Lena Luthor."

""You're not Lena Luthor.""

"I'm just a nurse who needs to be alone with the patient. Do you get it?"

""Yes.""

"Thank you."

Lena went through the door, hurrying to close it behind her so she would not be seen. The first thing she noticed was the strong smell of soap and serum, an odor that never seemed to disappear no matter how expensive the private clinic where she had checked her adoptive mother into was. Lena clenched her teeth, moving toward the bed, the desire to leave growing stronger as the image on the bed became sharper. Her hand closed into a fist without her noticing. "Hi, Lillian."

Lena took out the new cellphone she had bought just an hour ago, and that Kate had only needed six minutes to make impossible to track. 'I'm in,' she wrote to Kara.

'Ik,' was her immediate response. 'ICSUFTC. P?'

'?'

'I can see you from the car ¬¬ problems?'

'No.'

'K. Waiting 4 you. Good luck.'

'Won't take long.'

'Ik.'

Lena put the cellphone in her pocket, her eyes fixed on the woman in the bed. It was the first time she had visited Lillian since she fell into that uninterrupted dream, from which she had not awakened in months. _Should I have come before? Was it wise not to take a look at her?_ The truth is that she did not want to be there, but she needed to do it. She needed to say goodbye.

Her hair was a little longer than Lena remembered, and whiter. Lena was comforted to know that she would hate her gray hair. "It's scientifically proven that you can hear me," she noted that her right hand was handcuffed to the bed. _Good, they've not forgotten she's a criminal._ "I have come to say goodbye."

Lena sat in the chair on the other side of the bed. "You'll never see me again. When all this is over, if it ever ends, I'll find a way to wake you up so you can go back to prison. That's if you're lucky and my mothers or grandmother don't kill you. I don't think I want to keep stopping them, to be honest." Lena put her hands together. "I'll never forgive you for what you did. I don't mean kidnapping me. I hate you for it, but if you hadn't, I would be dead, and I have to be alive to end this. I wonder if that was your plan from the beginning." She sat up straight. "I wonder if you knew this was going to happen, that at some point your children would know the truth and a lot of people would die for that. And that's why I'll never forgive you, for all the people you killed. Because you used me to kill them."

"I bet you felt like an idiot," continued Lena. "When you realized that I couldn't read minds, I didn't have super strength, I couldn't fly. The Monitor wasn't going to make it so easy for you. You destroyed two families for nothing. You got rid of Lutessa in vain." Lena touched her medallion. "How could you leave your own daughter with those people? Look at what she has become. Not just a murderer; a coward who feeds a monster with children's blood. And worst of all, she's sure it's the right thing to do. And she's going to die for that." Lena pursed her lips. "She's going to kill herself trying to kill me. It won't stop until one of the two dies, and I can't save her. It's too late for that."

Lena stood up. "You'll never use me again. Goodbye, Li-"

She stopped when she noticed something in Lillian's right hand. It was healthy, not even a small scar that proved Diana had stabbed her months ago, as she confessed to her one night when she had slept in her apartment. _'I won't harm her as long as it's your will, my child,'_ were her words as she took her hand. ' _She destroyed my life, but I won't harm her because I prefer your love to my revenge.'_

 _There should be a scar_ , Lena thought as she leaned over and examined the soft skin of her hand. In doing so, her fingers found a crumpled material under her palm. Lena opened her eyes in surprise, realizing it was a paper ball in Lillian's fist.

She pulled it out and uncrumpled it quickly, her teeth clenched and her head suddenly heavy. _What did you do what did you do what did you do what did you do_. There was something written on the paper, with Lillian's unmistakable elegant handwriting.

Lena could have sworn that her heart had stopped beating for a minute.

Time ran again when the cellphone vibrated in her pocket. Lena hurriedly broke the paper into pieces and threw them out the window, before picking up the phone and reading Kara's message. _'Police near. Hv to go.'_ Taking a deep breath, she looked back at the woman in bed, trying to find something to say.

But when she did not find it, she turned around and went out the way she entered.

* * *

 **Karen Starr**

 **Salar de Uyuni.**

 **7:30 AM (Current local time in Bolivia)**

It was the realest dream Kara had ever had, but it was still a dream. One where pain controlled each of her steps, sand and salt clung to her body like a second skin and her mind was far, far away, so unattainable that it was the instinct that had made her get up and start walking for minutes, maybe hours. The truth is that Kara could have kept walking until the end of the world or until she died of hunger, but the dream became different the moment she spotted a small town in the distance.

In her dream, time passed until she reached the first streets, where the salt desert became earth dry and dead, but the sound of human voices reached her ears like a distant echo. Karen let herself be guided by her sense of smell, walking slowly to where it smelled better, breaking into a small, closed restaurant. It did not matter, it was not real, nothing was and nothing could stop her from getting to the smell. In the kitchen she found a stew of meat like she had never tasted it before, salty, very spicy. Karen started eating immediately.

"Qué carajo?" said someone behind her. Karen turned around, finding a short man with graying hair, his skin the color of candy. His expression changed when he looked at her. "Dios mío."

Karen did not answer, wondering what he was saying and what he was going to do.

"Señorita, ¿está bien? ¿Qué le pasó?"

"I don't understand you." The language seemed Spanish or Portuguese. "English," she said without moving.

"I not talk English much good," the older man replied, pointing to her shoulder. "Accident?"

For the first time Karen looked at her shoulder. "Oh." The Kryptonite bullet was still there. She dropped the pot and put her thumb and forefinger in her mouth, trying to remove the salt. Then she put both fingers into the bullet hole quickly, touching the bullet, using her fingernails to rip it out from her body. The green material was drenched in red. Karen threw it away. It hurt a lot, but it was a dream. It was not real pain.

"Miss," the man said. "You kidnapped?"

Without the Kryptonite bullet, the world became a little sharper around her. Karen felt that the dream was about to end, that at any moment she was going to wake up and she would have to do something very important. It was then that she remembered the black-haired woman. She had been with her, in her dream, saying her name and looking at her with false concern. Mocking her pain. _No more pain, no more death, she has to die._ She looked at the man. "Where's Lena?"

"Who Lena?"

"The monster."

"Luthor?"

"Where is she?"

"That North America crazy people," replied the man, keeping calm. "Here Bolivia."

"I see." Powergirl looked at her hands for a moment, allowing the world to regain realism. Her senses had not yet returned completely, but her mind had awakened. "Thanks for the food. Sorry for the inconvenience."

 _ ***BAM***_ The roof broke into pieces when she jumped and soared into the sky, the salt desert becoming a mirage beneath her. The wind took away the sand and salt, took away the heat and replaced it with a cold that spread across her chest. Karen wanted to scream until her lungs exploded, but she held back. She would have to save her strength to kill a monster.


End file.
